stats is a macOS system monitor in for the menu bar. The Stats application is vulnerable to a local privilege escalation due to the insecure implementation of its XPC service. The application registers a Mach service under the name `eu.exelban.Stats.SMC.Helper`. The associated binary, eu.exelban.Stats.SMC.Helper, is a privileged helper tool designed to execute actions requiring elevated privileges on behalf of the client, such as setting fan modes, adjusting fan speeds, and executing the `powermetrics` command. The root cause of this vulnerability lies in the `shouldAcceptNewConnection` method, which unconditionally returns YES (or true), allowing any XPC client to connect to the service without any form of verification. As a result, unauthorized clients can establish a connection to the Mach service and invoke methods exposed by the HelperTool interface. An attacker can exploit this vulnerability to modify the hardware settings of the user’s device and execute arbitrary code with root privileges. This issue has been addressed in version 2.11.21 and all users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.
Find out more about CVE-2025-21606 from the MITRE-CVE dictionary and NIST NVD
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| Product Name | Status | Defect | Fixed | Downloads |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Linux | ||||
| Wind River Linux LTS 17 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux 8 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux 9 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux 7 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 21 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 22 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 18 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 19 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux CD release | N/A | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux 6 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 23 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Linux LTS 24 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| VxWorks | ||||
| VxWorks 7 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| VxWorks 6.9 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Helix Virtualization Platform Cert Edition | ||||
| Helix Virtualization Platform Cert Edition | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| eLxr | ||||
| eLxr 12 | Not Vulnerable | -- | -- | -- |
| Wind River Studio Cloud Platform | ||||
| Product Name | Status | Defect | Fixed | Downloads |
|---|
