CVE-2024-7457 macOS Stash network-management utility: Unauthorized Manipulation of System Network Preferences
Unprivileged users can bypass authorization checks to modify system network proxy settings, enabling man-in-the-middle attacks.
- Exploited in the wild
- Not known
- Login needed
- Any signed-in user
- Attackable
- Local or same network only
- Victim action needed
- Not needed
- Fix
- None listed
What is CVE-2024-7457?
CVE-2024-7457 is a high-severity authentication bypass vulnerability in Stash, published on 10 Jun 2025. It can only be exploited from the same machine or local network, with no action from the victim.
Official description
The ws.stash.app.mac.daemon.helper tool contains a vulnerability caused by an incorrect use of macOS’s authorization model. Instead of validating the client's authorization reference, the helper invokes AuthorizationCopyRights() using its own privileged context (root), effectively authorizing itself rather than the client. As a result, it grants the system.preferences.admin right internally, regardless of the requesting client's privileges. This flawed logic allows unprivileged clients to invoke privileged operations via XPC, including unauthorized changes to system-wide network preferences such as SOCKS, HTTP, and HTTPS proxy settings. The absence of proper code-signing checks further enables arbitrary processes to exploit this flaw, leading to man-in-the-middle (MITM) attacks through traffic redirection.
Weakness: CWE-863
Which versions are affected by CVE-2024-7457?
How do I fix CVE-2024-7457?
No fix has been published for CVE-2024-7457 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.
Upgrade, and rotate credentials and sessions that may have been exposed. More about Authentication bypass.
Is CVE-2024-7457 being exploited?
There is no known exploitation of CVE-2024-7457 in the wild and no public exploit code.
Sources
Also known as GHSA-xgc5-8vg7-68x3.