VulnerabilityPublished 3 Dec 2025

CVE-2025-65843: Aquarius Desktop · CVE-2025-65843 is a high-severity local

Source CVE Database V5

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.7 High.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 13:47 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

7.7High

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.2% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 20% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N

Attack Vector: Local
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: None
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: None

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Local: The vulnerable component is not bound to the network stack and the attacker’s path is via read/write/execute capabilities. Either: the attacker exploits the vulnerability by accessing the target system locally (e.g., keyboard, console), or remotely (e.g., SSH); or the attacker relies on User Interaction by another person to perform actions required to exploit the vulnerability (e.g., tricking a legitimate user into opening a malicious document).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: None: The vulnerable system can be exploited without any interaction from any user.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: None: There is no impact to availability within the impacted component.

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 3 Dec 2025
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponised: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponised: Public exploit code exists in Metasploit or Exploit-DB, or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

AI-suggested

Specific mitigations include: 1) Restrict local access to macOS systems running Aquarius Desktop to trusted users only, minimizing the risk of malicious symlink planting. 2) Monitor and audit the ~/Library/Logs/Aquarius directory for unexpected symbolic links or unusual file system changes. 3) Employ macOS filesystem integrity and monitoring tools to detect unauthorized file modifications or symlink creations. 4) Temporarily disable or restrict the support data archive generation feature if feasible until a patch is available. 5) Apply the principle of least privilege to user accounts to reduce the impact of local exploits. 6) Coordinate with the vendor to obtain patches or updates addressing this vulnerability as soon as they become available. 7) Educate users about the risks of local file manipulation and enforce endpoint security policies. 8) If possible, sandbox or containerize Aquarius Desktop to limit filesystem access scope. These targeted actions go beyond generic advice by focusing on the specific attack vector and environment.

Description

CVE-2025-65843 is a high-severity local vulnerability in Aquarius Desktop 3.0.069 for macOS involving insecure file handling during support data archive generation. The application follows symbolic links within its log directory without validation, allowing a local attacker to create symlinks to arbitrary files. This can lead to unauthorized disclosure or modification of files. When combined with a related privilege escalation vulnerability in the HelperTool, even root-owned files may be exposed. The vulnerability requires local access but no user interaction or elevated privileges initially. Exploitation can compromise confidentiality and integrity of sensitive data. European organizations using Aquarius Desktop on macOS should prioritize patching and restrict local access to mitigate risk.

Impact

For European organizations, this vulnerability poses a significant risk to confidentiality and integrity of sensitive data stored on macOS systems running Aquarius Desktop. Unauthorized disclosure of files could lead to leakage of intellectual property, personal data, or internal logs. Modification of files could disrupt operations or facilitate further attacks. The ability to expose root-owned files when combined with privilege escalation increases the potential for full system compromise. Organizations with macOS endpoints used in development, research, or sensitive environments are particularly at risk. The local access requirement limits remote exploitation but insider threats or compromised accounts could leverage this vulnerability. Data protection regulations such as GDPR heighten the consequences of unauthorized data exposure. The lack of available patches means organizations must rely on mitigating controls until updates are released.

CWE-59Improper Link Resolution Before File Access ('Link Following') (opens in a new tab)
Base weaknessLikelihood of exploit: MediumOWASP Top 10 A01:2025: Broken Access Control (opens in a new tab)
The product attempts to access a file based on the filename, but it does not properly prevent that filename from identifying a link or shortcut that resolves to an unintended resource.
Architecture and Design · Separation of Privilege
Follow the principle of least privilege when assigning access rights to entities in a software system.
OWASP Cheat Sheets
Authorization (opens in a new tab)
Attack patterns
Symlink Attack (opens in a new tab)
Using Malicious Files (opens in a new tab)
Leverage Executable Code in Non-Executable Files (opens in a new tab)
Manipulating Web Input to File System Calls (opens in a new tab)
From MITRE CWE, MITRE CAPEC and OWASP (Top 10, OpenCRE).

References

almightysec.com/insecure-file-handling-via-symlink/ (opens in a new tab)

Community reviews

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Exploitation evidence

What to do

Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 10 Dec 2025, 17:25 UTC

WeaknessesCWE-59

Technical details

References

Community reviews

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