Multiple Security Vulerabilities Found In Apple's Disk Image Software

The "Month of Kernel Bugs" project has found two unpatched security vulnerabilities in the way Mac OS X handles .dmg files.

The first vulnerability, rated "highly critical" by security-firm Secunia, can lead to privilege escalation, denial of service, and system access by a remote user (if Safari's open "safe" files option is checked).

The second issue is similar in nature, in that a corrupted UDTO HFS+ .dmg (ex. bad sectors) can lead to a denial of service condition.

A workaround for both issues is to disable Safari's option to open "safe" files after downloading, and to not open any .dmg file from a source you do not trust.

The latest findings increase the total to four security bugs found in Apple's software since the beginning of the project this month (See also: Airport Driver Exploit , fpathconf() Exploit ). The project has also targeted Windows, Linux, and other popular BSD distributions, with a stated goal to "check how many unreported and unknown issues can be found in kernel code out there, using simple, yet effective tools deploying techniques such as fuzzing and 'stress testing'."

Popular Stories

Apple Announces Special Event in New York Feature 1

Apple Reportedly Plans to Unveil at Least Five New Products Next Week

Sunday February 22, 2026 9:48 am PST by
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said Apple will have a three-day stretch of product announcements from Monday, March 2 through Wednesday, March 4. In total, he expects Apple to introduce "at least five products." Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. A week ago, Apple invited selected journalists and content creators to an "Apple Experience" in...
iOS 26

iOS 26.3.1 Update for iPhones Coming Soon as 'Apple Experience' Nears

Sunday February 22, 2026 5:29 pm PST by
Apple's software engineers are testing iOS 26.3.1, according to the MacRumors visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.3.1 should be a minor update that fixes bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, and it will likely be released within the next two weeks. Last month, Apple released iOS 26.2.1 with bug fixes and support for the second-generation...
iPhone 18 Pro Deep Red Feature

Apple is Testing These iPhone 18 Pro and Foldable iPhone Colors

Sunday February 22, 2026 8:41 am PST by
The special new color that Apple is considering for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max this year is red, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Specifically, he said that Apple is testing a "deep red" finish for the two devices. If this rumor materializes, it would be the first time that the Pro and Pro Max models ever come in red, and the iPhone 18 Pro models would be the first...