CVE-2011-3877 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Cross-site scripting (XSS) vulnerability in the appcache internals page in Google Chrome before 15.0.874.102 allows remote attackers to inject arbitrary web script or HTML via unspecified vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 11/24/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-3877 represents a cross-site scripting flaw located within the application cache internals page of Google Chrome browser versions prior to 15.0.874.102. This issue falls under the CWE-79 category of Cross-Site Scripting, which is a fundamental web security weakness that allows attackers to inject malicious client-side scripts into web pages viewed by other users. The vulnerability specifically affects the browser's internal mechanisms for managing application cache functionality, which is part of the HTML5 specification designed to enable web applications to function offline by caching resources locally on the user's device.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and output sanitization within Chrome's application cache internals page implementation. Attackers could exploit this weakness by crafting malicious payloads that would be executed in the context of the victim's browser when they visited a compromised webpage. The unspecified vectors suggest that the attack could potentially occur through various methods including but not limited to malformed URLs, crafted HTTP headers, or manipulated cache manifest files that would be processed by Chrome's internal application cache system. This particular flaw was particularly concerning because it existed within the browser's own administrative interfaces rather than in user-facing web content, making it potentially more difficult to detect and mitigate.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple script execution as it could enable attackers to perform a wide range of malicious activities including session hijacking, credential theft, data exfiltration, and redirection to malicious websites. When a user navigates to a page that triggers the vulnerable code path, the injected scripts would execute with the privileges and permissions of the victim's browser session, potentially compromising sensitive information or allowing full control over the user's browsing experience. The vulnerability could be leveraged in phishing attacks where attackers could create convincing fake interfaces that appear to be legitimate browser components, making it particularly dangerous for unsuspecting users who might trust the browser's own interface elements. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1566.001 (Phishing: Spearphishing Attachment) and T1059.007 (Command and Scripting Interpreter: JavaScript) as it enables both initial access through malicious web content and execution of malicious scripts within the target environment.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2011-3877 primarily focus on immediate browser updates to versions 15.0.874.102 or later where the vulnerability has been patched. Organizations should implement comprehensive browser security policies that enforce automatic updates and maintain current versions of all browser software. Additional protective measures include deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious script injection attempts, implementing content security policies that restrict script execution, and conducting regular security assessments of web applications to identify potential XSS vulnerabilities. Network administrators should also consider implementing browser isolation techniques and monitoring for unusual traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts. The patch for this vulnerability specifically addressed the input validation mechanisms within Chrome's application cache internals page, ensuring that all user-provided data is properly sanitized before being rendered in the browser interface.