CVE-2025-11206: Google Chrome Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

CVE-2025-11206 Overview

CVE-2025-11206 is a heap buffer overflow vulnerability in the Video component of Google Chrome prior to version 141.0.7390.54. This memory corruption flaw allows a remote attacker to potentially perform a sandbox escape via a crafted HTML page. The vulnerability has been classified with high severity by the Chromium security team.

Critical Impact

A remote attacker can exploit this heap buffer overflow vulnerability to escape the Chrome sandbox, potentially gaining elevated privileges on the underlying operating system through specially crafted video content embedded in a malicious HTML page.

Affected Products

• Google Chrome versions prior to 141.0.7390.54
• Google Chrome on Microsoft Windows
• Google Chrome on Apple macOS
• Google Chrome on Linux

Discovery Timeline

• 2025-11-06 - CVE-2025-11206 published to NVD
• 2025-11-13 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2025-11206

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow) and CWE-787 (Out-of-bounds Write). The flaw resides in Chrome's Video processing component, where improper bounds checking during video data handling allows an attacker to write data beyond the allocated heap buffer boundaries.

The sandbox escape capability makes this vulnerability particularly concerning. Chrome's multi-process architecture typically isolates renderer processes from the operating system, but this heap overflow can be weaponized to break out of these containment mechanisms when processing maliciously crafted video content.

Root Cause

The root cause stems from insufficient validation of video data parameters during memory allocation and subsequent write operations in Chrome's Video component. When processing specially crafted video streams, the application fails to properly validate buffer boundaries, resulting in heap memory corruption that can be leveraged for arbitrary code execution and sandbox escape.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction. An attacker must convince a victim to visit a malicious webpage containing crafted HTML with embedded video content. The exploitation chain works as follows:

1. Attacker hosts a malicious webpage with specially crafted video content
2. Victim navigates to the malicious page using a vulnerable Chrome version
3. Chrome's Video component processes the malformed video data
4. Heap buffer overflow occurs during video processing
5. Attacker leverages the memory corruption to escape the browser sandbox
6. Potential for arbitrary code execution with elevated privileges on the host system

The attack can propagate across multiple operating systems including Windows, macOS, and Linux, making it a cross-platform threat.

Detection Methods for CVE-2025-11206

Indicators of Compromise

• Unusual Chrome renderer process crashes or restarts, particularly when browsing video-heavy content
• Unexpected child processes spawned by Chrome browser processes
• Memory access violations or heap corruption errors in Chrome crash logs
• Anomalous network connections from Chrome processes to unknown destinations
• Chrome process attempting to access system resources outside its sandbox scope

Detection Strategies

• Monitor for abnormal memory usage patterns in Chrome renderer processes handling video content
• Implement endpoint detection rules for sandbox escape attempts from browser processes
• Deploy browser-based security extensions that can detect malicious video content patterns
• Utilize SentinelOne's behavioral AI to detect anomalous Chrome process activity indicative of exploitation

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable Chrome crash reporting and monitor for Video component-related crashes
• Implement network monitoring for suspicious traffic patterns originating from browser processes
• Configure security information and event management (SIEM) rules to alert on Chrome sandbox violations
• Monitor for unusual file system or registry access from Chrome renderer processes

How to Mitigate CVE-2025-11206

Immediate Actions Required

• Update Google Chrome to version 141.0.7390.54 or later immediately on all systems
• Enable automatic Chrome updates to ensure timely patching of future vulnerabilities
• Consider restricting access to untrusted websites until patching is complete
• Review and audit browser security policies across the organization

Patch Information

Google has addressed this vulnerability in Chrome version 141.0.7390.54. Organizations should prioritize deployment of this update across all managed endpoints. The fix addresses the improper bounds checking in the Video component that allowed the heap buffer overflow condition.

For detailed information about the security update, refer to the Google Chrome Stable Update announcement. Technical details about the vulnerability can be found in the Chromium Issue Tracker #444755026.

Workarounds

• Disable automatic video playback in Chrome settings until patching is possible
• Use browser isolation technologies to contain potential exploitation attempts
• Implement web filtering to block access to known malicious domains hosting exploit code
• Consider using alternative browsers temporarily for high-risk browsing activities

# Verify Chrome version and update status
# On Windows (PowerShell):
(Get-Item "C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe").VersionInfo.FileVersion

# On macOS (Terminal):
/Applications/Google\ Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google\ Chrome --version

# On Linux (Terminal):
google-chrome --version

# Ensure version is 141.0.7390.54 or higher