How severe is CVE-2025-65842?

CVE-2025-65842 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.1, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability none.

Is CVE-2025-65842 being actively exploited?

It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (4th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.

What products are affected by CVE-2025-65842?

CVE-2025-65842 affects Acustica-audio Aquarius Helpertool. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.

How do I fix CVE-2025-65842?

Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.

Does CVE-2025-65842 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?

Yes. CVE-2025-65842 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-200990.

When was CVE-2025-65842 published?

CVE-2025-65842 was published on 2025-12-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

CVE-2025-65842

CVE-2025-65842 is a medium-severity vulnerability in Acustica-audio Aquarius Helpertool with a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.1. It is not currently listed as actively exploited by CISA, and its EPSS exploit-prediction score is low. The underlying weakness is classified as CWE-266.

Key facts

Severity: Medium (CVSS 3.x base score 5.1)
EPSS exploit prediction: 0% (4th percentile)
Actively exploited: Not listed in CISA KEV
EU (EUVD) id: EUVD-2025-200990
Weakness: CWE-266
Affected product: Acustica-audio Aquarius Helpertool
Published: 2025-12-03
Last modified: 2026-06-17

Description

The Aquarius HelperTool (1.0.003) privileged XPC service on macOS contains multiple flaws that allow local privilege escalation. The service accepts XPC connections from any local process without validating the client's identity, and its authorization logic incorrectly calls AuthorizationCopyRights with a NULL reference, causing all authorization checks to succeed. The executeCommand:authorization:withReply: method then interpolates attacker-controlled input into NSTask and executes it with root privileges. A local attacker can exploit these weaknesses to run arbitrary commands as root, create persistent backdoors, or obtain a fully interactive root shell.

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2025-65842?: The Aquarius HelperTool (1.0.003) privileged XPC service on macOS contains multiple flaws that allow local privilege escalation. The service accepts XPC connections from any local process without validating the client's identity, and its authorization logic incorrectly calls AuthorizationCopyRights with a NULL reference, causing all authorization checks to succeed. The executeCommand:authorization:withReply: method then interpolates attacker-controlled input into NSTask and executes it with root privileges. A local attacker can exploit these weaknesses to run arbitrary commands as root, create persistent backdoors, or obtain a fully interactive root shell.
How severe is CVE-2025-65842?: CVE-2025-65842 has a CVSS 3.x base score of 5.1, rated medium severity. It is exploitable over local access with low attack complexity, requires no privileges and no user interaction. Impact on confidentiality is low, integrity low, and availability none.
Is CVE-2025-65842 being actively exploited?: It is not currently listed in CISA's KEV catalog. Its EPSS exploit-prediction score is 0% (4th percentile), an estimate of the probability of exploitation in the next 30 days.
What products are affected by CVE-2025-65842?: CVE-2025-65842 affects Acustica-audio Aquarius Helpertool. See the affected-products list for the exact vulnerable versions.
How do I fix CVE-2025-65842?: Review the linked vendor and NVD advisories for patched versions and mitigations, then upgrade or apply the recommended workaround.
Does CVE-2025-65842 have an EU (EUVD) identifier?: Yes. CVE-2025-65842 is tracked in the ENISA EU Vulnerability Database (EUVD) as EUVD-2025-200990.
When was CVE-2025-65842 published?: CVE-2025-65842 was published on 2025-12-03 and last updated on 2026-06-17.

References

https://almightysec.com/helpertool-xpc-service-local-privilege-escalation/

Affected products (1)

cpe:2.3:a:acustica-audio:aquarius_helpertool:1.0.003:*:*:*:*:*:*:*

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