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

CVE-2024-5832 Overview

CVE-2024-5832 is a use after free vulnerability in the Dawn component of Google Chrome prior to version 126.0.6478.54. Dawn is the WebGPU implementation used by Chrome to provide low-level graphics and compute capabilities. This vulnerability allows a remote attacker to potentially exploit heap corruption via a crafted HTML page, which could lead to arbitrary code execution or browser compromise.

Critical Impact

Remote attackers can exploit this use after free condition through a specially crafted HTML page, potentially achieving code execution with the privileges of the browser process.

Affected Products

• Google Chrome versions prior to 126.0.6478.54
• Fedora Project Fedora 39
• Fedora Project 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

This use after free vulnerability exists in Chrome's Dawn component, which handles WebGPU operations. Use after free (CWE-416) vulnerabilities occur when a program continues to use memory after it has been freed. In the context of Dawn, this flaw can be triggered when processing certain WebGPU operations, allowing an attacker to manipulate the freed memory region.

The vulnerability requires user interaction—specifically, a victim must navigate to a malicious webpage containing the crafted HTML and JavaScript code. Once triggered, the heap corruption can potentially be leveraged for arbitrary code execution within the browser's sandboxed environment, though sandbox escape would typically require chaining with additional vulnerabilities.

Root Cause

The root cause is a use after free condition (CWE-416) in the Dawn WebGPU implementation. This occurs when an object in memory is freed but a reference to that memory location is retained and subsequently accessed. In graphics APIs like WebGPU, complex object lifecycles involving GPU resources, command buffers, and rendering pipelines can create scenarios where improper reference counting or object destruction ordering leads to dangling pointer access.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction. An attacker would need to:

1. Create a malicious webpage containing crafted HTML and JavaScript that exercises the vulnerable code path in Dawn
2. Lure a victim to visit the malicious page (via phishing, malvertising, or compromised legitimate sites)
3. The crafted WebGPU API calls trigger the use after free condition
4. The attacker-controlled data is placed into the freed memory region
5. When the dangling pointer is dereferenced, attacker-controlled data is interpreted as object data, potentially enabling code execution

The vulnerability can be exploited through standard web browsing without requiring any special plugins or configurations beyond having WebGPU enabled.

Detection Methods for CVE-2024-5832

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected browser crashes or instability, particularly on sites using WebGPU functionality
• Memory access violations or heap corruption errors in Chrome crash reports referencing Dawn or WebGPU components
• Unusual network connections initiated from Chrome processes following visits to suspicious websites
• Chrome sandbox escape attempts or anomalous child process spawning

Detection Strategies

• Monitor for Chrome versions older than 126.0.6478.54 in your environment through software inventory tools
• Implement network-based detection for known malicious domains serving WebGPU exploit attempts
• Deploy endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions like SentinelOne to detect post-exploitation behaviors
• Review Chrome crash dumps for Dawn-related memory corruption indicators

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable Chrome crash reporting and monitor for patterns of Dawn/WebGPU-related crashes
• Implement browser version tracking across endpoints to identify vulnerable installations
• Configure SentinelOne Singularity to monitor for suspicious browser process behavior and memory manipulation attempts
• Set up alerts for network connections to newly registered domains from Chrome processes

How to Mitigate CVE-2024-5832

Immediate Actions Required

• Update Google Chrome to version 126.0.6478.54 or later immediately across all systems
• Enable automatic updates for Chrome to ensure timely patching of future vulnerabilities
• Apply Fedora security updates for affected Fedora 39 and Fedora 40 systems
• Consider temporarily disabling WebGPU via Chrome flags if immediate patching is not possible

Patch Information

Google has addressed this vulnerability in Chrome version 126.0.6478.54, released as part of the stable channel update in June 2024. The fix corrects the object lifecycle management in Dawn to prevent the use after free condition.

For detailed patch information, see the Google Chrome Stable Update announcement. Technical details about the vulnerability can be found in the Chromium Issue Tracker Entry.

Fedora users should apply the security updates announced in the Fedora Package Announcement.

Workarounds

• Disable WebGPU in Chrome by navigating to chrome://flags and setting "Unsafe WebGPU" to Disabled
• Use browser isolation solutions to contain potential exploitation attempts
• Implement web filtering to block access to untrusted or newly registered domains
• Consider using a browser security extension that blocks WebGPU API access on untrusted sites

# Check Chrome version on Linux/macOS
google-chrome --version
# or
chromium-browser --version

# On Fedora, update Chrome via dnf
sudo dnf update chromium

# Disable WebGPU via command line flag
google-chrome --disable-features=WebGPU