CVE-2026-2650: Google Chrome Buffer Overflow Vulnerability

CVE-2026-2650 Overview

A heap buffer overflow vulnerability exists in the Media component of Google Chrome prior to version 145.0.7632.109. This memory corruption flaw allows a remote attacker to potentially exploit heap corruption through a crafted HTML page. When a user visits a malicious webpage containing specially crafted media content, the vulnerability can be triggered, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution within the browser's context.

Critical Impact

This heap buffer overflow vulnerability enables remote attackers to potentially execute arbitrary code or cause heap corruption by enticing users to visit malicious web pages with crafted HTML content.

Affected Products

• Google Chrome versions prior to 145.0.7632.109

Discovery Timeline

• 2026-02-18 - CVE-2026-2650 published to NVD
• 2026-02-19 - Last updated in NVD database

Technical Details for CVE-2026-2650

Vulnerability Analysis

This vulnerability is classified as CWE-122 (Heap-based Buffer Overflow), a critical memory safety issue that occurs when data is written beyond the allocated boundaries of a heap buffer. In the context of Google Chrome's Media component, the flaw manifests during the processing of media content, where improper bounds checking allows an attacker to overflow heap memory regions.

The vulnerability requires user interaction—specifically, the victim must navigate to a webpage containing the malicious payload. Once triggered, the heap corruption can potentially be leveraged to gain control over program execution flow, bypass security mechanisms, or cause the browser to crash.

Root Cause

The root cause lies in insufficient bounds validation within the Media component's memory handling routines. When processing certain media-related data structures, the affected code fails to properly verify the size of input data before copying it to heap-allocated buffers. This oversight allows attackers to supply oversized data that overwrites adjacent heap memory, corrupting heap metadata and potentially gaining control over heap allocation behavior.

Attack Vector

The attack vector is network-based and requires user interaction. An attacker must craft a malicious HTML page containing specially constructed media elements designed to trigger the buffer overflow. The attack scenario typically involves:

1. Attacker creates a webpage with malformed media content specifically designed to trigger the overflow condition
2. Victim is enticed to visit the malicious page through phishing, malvertising, or compromised legitimate websites
3. The Chrome browser processes the media content, triggering the heap buffer overflow
4. Successful exploitation may result in arbitrary code execution within the browser sandbox or denial of service

The vulnerability manifests in Chrome's Media component during content processing. For detailed technical information, refer to the Chromium Issue Tracker Entry and the Google Chrome Stable Update blog post.

Detection Methods for CVE-2026-2650

Indicators of Compromise

• Unexpected browser crashes or instability when loading media-rich web pages
• Memory corruption errors or heap-related exceptions in browser crash reports
• Anomalous memory allocation patterns in Chrome's Media component
• Unusual network traffic to unknown or suspicious domains serving media content

Detection Strategies

• Monitor for Chrome crash reports containing references to media processing or heap corruption
• Implement network-level inspection for potentially malicious HTML pages with embedded media exploits
• Deploy endpoint detection solutions that can identify heap spray attempts and exploitation techniques
• Use browser telemetry to identify abnormal Media component behavior across endpoints

Monitoring Recommendations

• Enable Chrome's built-in security reporting and monitor for Media component-related errors
• Implement centralized logging for browser security events across the enterprise
• Monitor for unusual browser process behavior indicative of exploitation attempts
• Track Chrome version deployment to ensure vulnerable versions are identified and updated

How to Mitigate CVE-2026-2650

Immediate Actions Required

• Update Google Chrome to version 145.0.7632.109 or later immediately
• Enable automatic updates for Chrome across all managed endpoints
• Consider restricting access to untrusted websites until patching is complete
• Review and audit Chrome installations across the organization to identify vulnerable versions

Patch Information

Google has released Chrome version 145.0.7632.109 which addresses this heap buffer overflow vulnerability. The update is available through Chrome's standard update mechanism and should be deployed as a priority. For detailed information about the security update, see the Google Chrome Stable Update announcement.

Workarounds

• Implement strict web filtering policies to block access to known malicious domains
• Configure enterprise browsers to disable or restrict media content from untrusted sources where feasible
• Deploy network-level security controls to inspect and filter potentially malicious HTML content
• Ensure browser isolation technologies are in place for high-risk users

# Verify Chrome version on endpoint
google-chrome --version
# Expected output: Google Chrome 145.0.7632.109 or higher

# Force Chrome update check (Linux/macOS)
# Navigate to: chrome://settings/help to trigger update