CVE-2011-3967 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Unspecified vulnerability in Google Chrome before 17.0.963.46 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) via a crafted certificate.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/20/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2011-3967 represents a critical security flaw within Google Chrome browser versions prior to 17.0.963.46 that enables remote attackers to execute a denial of service attack through the manipulation of digital certificates. This issue falls under the broader category of certificate handling vulnerabilities that can severely impact browser stability and user experience. The unspecified nature of the vulnerability suggests that the underlying technical flaw may involve improper validation or processing of certificate data structures within Chrome's security architecture.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from insufficient input validation within Chrome's certificate processing pipeline. When the browser encounters a crafted certificate that contains malformed or maliciously constructed data elements, the certificate parsing mechanism fails to properly handle these anomalies, leading to application instability and subsequent crash conditions. This flaw operates at the intersection of certificate validation and memory management, where improper error handling during certificate inspection causes the browser to terminate unexpectedly. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic weakness in defensive programming practices where edge cases in certificate data are not adequately addressed, potentially allowing attackers to craft certificates that exploit these gaps in validation logic.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability presents significant risks to users and organizations relying on Chrome for web browsing activities. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can trigger the denial of service condition without requiring local access or user interaction beyond visiting a malicious website. This makes the vulnerability particularly dangerous in environments where users may encounter untrusted content or where automated attacks could target large user bases. The impact extends beyond simple browser disruption, as repeated exploitation could lead to persistent service degradation, user frustration, and potential productivity losses in enterprise environments where browser stability is critical for business operations.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-170, which addresses improper handling of inputs that can cause unexpected behavior in software systems, and demonstrates characteristics consistent with ATT&CK technique T1499.004 related to network denial of service attacks. Organizations should implement immediate mitigation strategies including mandatory browser updates to version 17.0.963.46 or later, which contains the necessary patches to properly validate certificate structures and prevent the exploitation of this vulnerability. Network administrators should also consider implementing certificate inspection policies and monitoring for suspicious certificate patterns that might indicate attempts to exploit this flaw. Additionally, user education regarding the importance of keeping browser software up to date remains crucial in defending against such vulnerabilities that exploit outdated software components.