CVE-2010-1231 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Google Chrome before 4.1.249.1036 processes HTTP headers before invoking the SafeBrowsing feature, which allows remote attackers to have an unspecified impact via crafted headers.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 05/04/2026
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2010-1231 represents a critical security flaw in Google Chrome versions prior to 4.1.249.1036 where the browser's processing of HTTP headers occurs before the activation of the SafeBrowsing protection mechanism. This temporal ordering issue creates a window of opportunity for malicious actors to exploit the browser's security architecture through carefully crafted HTTP headers that bypass the intended protective measures. The vulnerability falls under the category of improper input handling and timing dependencies in security feature implementation, which is classified as CWE-254 in the Common Weakness Enumeration catalog.
The technical execution of this vulnerability relies on the improper sequence of operations within Chrome's HTTP processing pipeline. When Chrome receives HTTP responses, it first parses and processes the headers before determining whether to engage the SafeBrowsing checks that would normally alert users to potentially dangerous content. This design flaw allows attackers to manipulate header values in such a way that they can circumvent the security checks that would otherwise detect malicious content or phishing attempts. The specific impact remains unspecified in the original CVE description, but such vulnerabilities typically enable various attack vectors including phishing, malware distribution, or credential theft.
From an operational standpoint, this vulnerability creates significant risk for Chrome users who may encounter malicious content without proper warning mechanisms. Attackers can craft HTTP responses with deceptive headers that appear legitimate to the browser's initial processing phase but trigger malicious behavior once the SafeBrowsing checks are bypassed. The vulnerability's exploitation requires minimal network-level access and can be executed through standard web browsing activities, making it particularly dangerous for end users. This type of vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1071.001 for application layer protocol usage and T1566 for phishing attacks.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2010-1231 primarily involve updating to Google Chrome version 4.1.249.1036 or later, which corrects the header processing order to ensure SafeBrowsing checks occur before any header-based processing. Organizations should also implement network-level security controls such as web application firewalls and content filtering solutions to provide additional defense in depth. Security teams should conduct regular vulnerability assessments to identify outdated browser installations and ensure comprehensive patch management procedures are in place. The fix addresses the core issue by reordering the processing sequence to prioritize security checks over header parsing, thereby preventing the bypass of protective mechanisms that would normally prevent users from accessing malicious content. This vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper temporal ordering in security feature implementation and highlights the need for comprehensive security architecture reviews to prevent similar timing-dependent vulnerabilities in web browsers and other security-critical applications.