Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. News

Digital Trends may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site. Why trust us?

This critical exploit could let hackers bypass your Mac’s defenses

Alex Blake
By

Microsoft has discovered a critical exploit in macOS that could grant hackers easy access to your Mac’s most important data. Dubbed ‘Migraine,’ it shows why it’s vital to update your Mac as soon as possible.

Migraine is so damaging because it can bypass Apple’s System Integrity Protection, or SIP for short. SIP is enabled by default on modern Macs and works by sandboxing sensitive parts of the computer from outside meddling. Only processes that are signed by Apple (or those with special privileges, like Apple installers) are allowed to alter something guarded by SIP.

A hacker typing on an Apple MacBook laptop while holding a phone. Both devices show code on their screens.
Sora Shimazaki / Pexels

If a piece of malware can simply sneak past SIP, though, it can do untold damage — and that’s just what Migraine is capable of.

Recommended Videos

Ordinarily, the only way to disable SIP is to restart your Mac in Recovery mode, enter a specific command into the Terminal, then restart again. That means you need to be present in front of the computer in question, which on the surface should make exploits like Migraine untenable.

Related

However, Migraine doesn’t actually require physical access to the target device, meaning a hacker could activate it remotely and gain unauthorized admission to the most sensitive parts of your Mac.

Instead, Migraine abuses macOS’ built-in Migration Assistant utility, which contains SIP-bypassing capabilities. Microsoft’s researchers found that a person can automate the utility’s migration process with AppleScript, add a malicious payload to the SIP exclusions list, then launch it on the target Mac. All of this could be done without restarting the computer or booting from macOS Recovery mode.

Update your Mac now

Window's new Microsoft Security Experts program works to protect users from cybercrime using.
Windows

Getting past the protections offered up by SIP gives malware writers significant powers to harm your Mac. They could bypass Apple’s Transparency, Consent, and Control (TCC) policies, for example, which would grant them access to your private data. Or they could craft SIP-protected malware that can’t be deleted using normal methods.

That all makes this vulnerability a very high priority to get fixed. Fortunately, Apple and Microsoft have been working hand in hand to do just that. Microsoft alerted Apple as soon as it discovered the vulnerability, and Apple was able to quickly roll out a fix in various updates: macOS Ventura 13.4, macOS Monterey 12.6.6, and macOS Big Sur 11.7.7, all of which were released on May 18.

It’s not the first time that an exploit has been found that can access extremely important data on your Mac. If anything, Migraine illustrates exactly why you should always keep your Mac up to date and install security fixes as soon as they become available. Doing that should help you stay on top of headache-inducing threats like Migraine.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Alex Blake
Alex Blake
Computing Writer
In ancient times, people like Alex would have been shunned for their nerdy ways and strange opinions on cheese. Today, he…
MacBooks could finally get Face ID to boost your security
Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air placed on a desk.

Apple is working on bringing its Face ID authentication system to MacBooks, in what could be a major move to boost your Mac’s security. That’s according to a newly granted patent (number 11727718) that describes the benefits of Face ID and how it could be added to Apple’s laptops.

In the patent, Apple explains that computers are capable of a great deal of different tasks, and many of them can involve storing or handing over your sensitive information -- information that should not fall into the wrong hands. To stop that from happening, some form of authentication system (like Face ID) could be implemented into laptops to toughen up their security.

Read more
How macOS Sonoma could fix widgets — or make them even worse
Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air on a desk, with macOS Sonoma running on its display.

At its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) earlier this year, Apple revealed that interactive widgets would be coming to macOS Sonoma. That probably sounds like a tiny new feature, and sure, it’s not as earth-shattering as the Vision Pro announcement. But it could turn out to be one of the most divisive new features in the Mac operating system.

In macOS Sonoma, you’ll be able to plant widgets on your desktop instead of hiding them in the Notification Center. Many widgets will be interactive, letting you tick off to-do list items without opening the widget’s app, for example. And you’ll be able to run iOS widgets right on your desktop, even if that app isn’t installed on your Mac. It’s a pretty comprehensive overhaul. Depending on how well these interactive widgets work, though, we could be left with a bunch of annoying distractions or a set of super-helpful timesavers. The way Apple handles them is going to be vital.
We've been here before

Read more
Is macOS more secure than Windows? This malware report has the answer
A person using a laptop with a set of code seen on the display.

It’s a long-held belief that Macs are less at risk of malware and viruses than Windows PCs, but how true is that? Well, a new report has shed some light on the situation -- and the results might surprise you.

According to threat research firm Elastic Security Labs, roughly 39% of all malware infections happen on Windows PCs. In good news for Apple fans, only 6% of breaches occurred on macOS, making Mac systems far less vulnerable than their Windows counterparts.

Read more