CVE-2024-5832: Google Chrome Use After Free Vulnerability

CVE-2024-5832 Overview

CVE-2024-5832 is a use-after-free vulnerability [CWE-416] in the Dawn component of Google Chrome. Dawn is Chrome's cross-platform implementation of the WebGPU standard. The flaw affects Google Chrome versions prior to 126.0.6478.54. A remote attacker can exploit heap corruption by serving a crafted HTML page to a victim. Successful exploitation requires user interaction, such as visiting a malicious website. The Chromium project rated the security severity as High.

Critical Impact
Heap corruption triggered through a malicious web page can lead to arbitrary code execution in the renderer process, compromising the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected browser session.

Affected Products

Google Chrome versions prior to 126.0.6478.54
Fedora 39
Fedora 40

Discovery Timeline

2024-06-11 - CVE-2024-5832 published to NVD
2024-11-21 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2024-5832

Vulnerability Analysis

The vulnerability resides in Dawn, the Chromium implementation of the WebGPU graphics API. WebGPU exposes GPU functionality to web content through JavaScript. Dawn manages the lifecycle of GPU resources, command encoders, and rendering pipelines. A use-after-free condition occurs when code references memory after it has been freed. In Dawn, this can happen when an object is released while another component still holds a pointer to it. The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction to load attacker-controlled HTML and JavaScript.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper object lifetime management within Dawn. WebGPU operations execute asynchronously and involve multiple objects such as devices, buffers, textures, and command encoders. When an object is destroyed but a stale reference remains, subsequent access reads or writes freed heap memory. This corruption can be steered by an attacker to overwrite adjacent allocations, function pointers, or virtual table entries.

Attack Vector

Exploitation begins when a user visits a crafted HTML page. The page issues a sequence of WebGPU API calls designed to trigger the dangling reference in Dawn. After the use-after-free is reached, the attacker uses heap grooming techniques to place controlled data into the freed region. The resulting heap corruption can be leveraged for renderer process code execution, which forms the first stage of a sandbox escape chain.

No verified exploitation code examples are available for CVE-2024-5832. The Chromium project restricts access to issue 340196361 until a majority of users have updated. Refer to the Google Chrome Update Announcement for the official disclosure.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-5832

Indicators of Compromise

Chrome renderer process crashes referencing Dawn or WebGPU modules in crash dumps
Unexpected child process creation from the Chrome renderer following navigation to an untrusted site
Outbound connections from Chrome to unfamiliar domains immediately after a crash event
Browser instances running versions earlier than 126.0.6478.54 in enterprise inventory scans

Detection Strategies

Inventory installed Chrome builds across endpoints and flag any version below 126.0.6478.54
Monitor renderer process exit codes for STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION and Dawn-related stack frames
Apply web filtering to block known malicious domains hosting WebGPU exploitation content
Correlate browser crash telemetry with subsequent suspicious process or network activity

Monitoring Recommendations

Forward Chrome crash reports and EDR telemetry to a centralized analytics platform for review
Track WebGPU feature usage through enterprise browser reporting where supported
Alert on Chrome processes spawning shells, scripting interpreters, or LOLBins immediately after navigation

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-5832

Immediate Actions Required

Update Google Chrome to version 126.0.6478.54 or later on all managed endpoints
Update Fedora 39 and Fedora 40 systems using dnf update chromium to apply the distribution patches
Restart browser sessions after the update to ensure the vulnerable code is unloaded from memory
Validate patch deployment through configuration management or vulnerability scanning tools

Patch Information

Google released the fix in the Chrome stable channel build 126.0.6478.54. Details are documented in the Stable Channel Update for Desktop. Fedora published corresponding package updates in the Fedora 39 announcement and the Fedora 40 announcement.

Workarounds

Disable WebGPU through enterprise policy by setting the chrome://flags/#enable-unsafe-webgpu flag to Disabled where patching is delayed
Restrict access to untrusted sites through web filtering and DNS controls until updates are applied
Enforce site isolation and the Chrome sandbox to limit renderer compromise impact

bash

# Configuration example: enforce minimum Chrome version via enterprise policy (Linux)
cat <<EOF > /etc/opt/chrome/policies/managed/chrome_version_policy.json
{
  "BrowserSwitcherEnabled": false,
  "DefaultWebUsbGuardSetting": 2,
  "WebGpuEnabled": false
}
EOF