TCC Bypass via Dylib Injection in Phoenix Code
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Local
- Privileges required
- Low
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Attack requirements
- None
- Impact type
- —
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- Low · Low · None
- Fix status
- No fix listed
Attack profile from CVSS 4.0 · CNA. Fix status from CNA.
Summary
The Phoenix Code's configuration on macOS, specifically the presence of entitlements: "com.apple.security.cs.allow-dyld-environment-variables" and "com.apple.security.cs.disable-library-validation" allows for Dynamic Library (Dylib) injection. A local attacker with unprivileged access can use environment variables like DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES to successfully inject code in application's context and bypass Transparency, Consent, and Control (TCC). Acquired resource access is limited to previously granted permissions by the user. Access to other resources beyond granted-permissions requires user interaction with a system prompt asking for permission. This issue was fixed in commit 0c75fb57f89d0b7d9b180026bc2624b7dcf807da
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- No
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
Remediation
No fixed version listed by the sources yet.
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2025-5255
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-m2wv-p5gg-25gq
References
Sources
- CVE-2025-5255 · CVE Program
- CVE-2025-5255 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-m2wv-p5gg-25gq · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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