CVE-2026-15111: Google Chrome Use After Free Vulnerability

CVE-2026-15111 Overview

CVE-2026-15111 is a use-after-free vulnerability [CWE-416] in the Views component of Google Chrome versions prior to 150.0.7871.115. A remote attacker can trigger heap corruption by convincing a user to visit a crafted HTML page and perform specific user interface (UI) gestures. Successful exploitation can lead to arbitrary code execution within the browser process context.

Google has rated the Chromium security severity as High. The vulnerability affects the desktop stable channel and was addressed in the stable channel update released by Google.

Critical Impact
Remote attackers can achieve heap corruption in the Chrome renderer or browser process through a crafted web page combined with user interaction, potentially leading to code execution.

Affected Products

Google Chrome for Desktop versions prior to 150.0.7871.115
Chromium-based browsers incorporating the vulnerable Views component
All desktop platforms (Windows, macOS, Linux) running affected Chrome builds

Discovery Timeline

2026-07-08 - CVE-2026-15111 published to the National Vulnerability Database (NVD)
2026-07-09 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-15111

Vulnerability Analysis

The flaw resides in the Views subsystem, the Chromium framework responsible for rendering UI elements such as menus, dialogs, and window chrome. A use-after-free condition occurs when the Views code retains a reference to a heap object that has already been released. When the attacker triggers specific UI gestures against a crafted HTML page, the freed memory is reused, allowing manipulation of heap-managed state.

An attacker who controls the contents of the freed region can influence virtual function pointers or object metadata. This corruption can be leveraged to hijack control flow. Because the Views component runs in a privileged browser-process context relative to the sandboxed renderer, exploitation impacts confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the browsing session.

Exploitation requires user interaction, which increases attack complexity but does not eliminate the risk in social engineering scenarios. The EPSS probability is currently 0.161%.

Root Cause

The root cause is improper object lifetime management within the Views component. A dangling pointer references a View or related UI object after its destructor has executed. Subsequent access through this stale pointer, prompted by user-driven UI events, dereferences reclaimed heap memory. See the Chromium Issue Tracker Entry for the underlying report.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based. An attacker hosts a malicious HTML page and lures a user to visit it. The page then instructs or entices the user to perform specific UI gestures such as clicks, drags, or menu interactions that reach the vulnerable code path. No authentication is required, but the attack complexity is elevated by the required user interaction and gesture timing.

Because no verified public proof-of-concept is available, technical exploitation details are limited to the vendor's advisory. Refer to the Google Chrome Desktop Update for the vendor description.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-15111

Indicators of Compromise

Unexpected Chrome process crashes with heap corruption signatures in Windows Error Reporting or crashpad dumps
Chrome browser or GPU process spawning unusual child processes such as cmd.exe, powershell.exe, or shell interpreters
Outbound network connections from chrome.exe to untrusted infrastructure following user visits to unknown domains

Detection Strategies

Inventory Chrome versions across the fleet and flag any host running builds earlier than 150.0.7871.115
Monitor endpoint telemetry for anomalous child processes and memory access violations originating from Chrome
Correlate web proxy logs with endpoint crash events to identify users who visited suspicious pages immediately before browser instability

Monitoring Recommendations

Enable and centralize Chrome crash reporting to detect exploitation attempts producing heap corruption
Alert on Chrome processes performing suspicious behaviors such as writing to autorun locations or injecting into other processes
Track browser update compliance through management tooling to ensure the patched version is deployed enterprise-wide

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-15111

Immediate Actions Required

Update Google Chrome to version 150.0.7871.115 or later on all desktop endpoints
Restart Chrome after the update to ensure the patched binaries are loaded into memory
Verify that Chromium-based browsers and embedded WebViews in the environment have incorporated the upstream fix

Patch Information

Google addressed the vulnerability in the stable channel update announced via the Google Chrome Desktop Update. Administrators should deploy Chrome 150.0.7871.115 or newer through enterprise update policies. The Chromium Issue Tracker Entry tracks the underlying fix.

Workarounds

Restrict browsing to trusted sites through web filtering while patching is in progress
Educate users to avoid engaging with unsolicited UI prompts and gestures on untrusted pages
Consider enterprise policies that enforce automatic Chrome updates via ChromeAutoUpdate group policy settings

bash

# Verify installed Chrome version on Windows
reg query "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Google\Update\Clients\{8A69D345-D564-463C-AFF1-A69D9E530F96}" /v pv

# Verify installed Chrome version on Linux
google-chrome --version

# Verify installed Chrome version on macOS
/Applications/Google\ Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google\ Chrome --version