CVE-2012-2894 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Google Chrome before 22.0.1229.79 does not properly handle graphics-context data structures, which allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (application crash) or possibly have unspecified other impact via unknown vectors.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/14/2021
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-2894 affects Google Chrome versions prior to 22.0.1229.79 and stems from improper handling of graphics-context data structures within the browser's rendering engine. This flaw represents a critical security issue that could potentially enable remote attackers to execute arbitrary code or cause system instability through carefully crafted web content. The vulnerability resides in the browser's graphics processing subsystem, specifically in how it manages and manipulates graphics context data structures that are essential for rendering web pages with complex visual elements.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves memory management errors within Chrome's graphics rendering pipeline where the browser fails to properly validate or sanitize graphics-context data structures before processing them. This improper handling creates opportunities for attackers to manipulate these data structures through malicious web content, potentially leading to buffer overflows, memory corruption, or other low-level memory manipulation issues. The vulnerability's impact extends beyond simple denial of service as it could enable remote code execution through carefully crafted exploit payloads that leverage the graphics processing context manipulation.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to users who browse the internet regularly, particularly in enterprise environments where Chrome is widely deployed. The attack surface is extensive since any web page could potentially contain malicious graphics context data that triggers the vulnerability. The unspecified other impacts mentioned in the CVE description suggest that while denial of service is the primary concern, there is potential for more severe consequences including privilege escalation or complete system compromise. This vulnerability aligns with CWE-125, which describes out-of-bounds read conditions, and CWE-787, which covers out-of-bounds write operations, both of which are common in graphics rendering contexts.
The exploitation of this vulnerability typically follows attack patterns consistent with the ATT&CK framework's initial access and execution phases. Attackers would likely use web-based delivery mechanisms to present malicious content to victims, leveraging the graphics processing capabilities of Chrome to trigger memory corruption. The vulnerability's remediation requires immediate patching of Chrome browsers to version 22.0.1229.79 or later, which includes memory safety improvements and enhanced validation of graphics-context data structures. Organizations should implement comprehensive browser update management policies and consider deploying additional security controls such as web application firewalls and content filtering solutions to mitigate exposure while patches are being deployed. The vulnerability also highlights the importance of regular security assessments and penetration testing of browser environments to identify similar issues in other browser components or third-party plugins that might share similar graphics processing vulnerabilities.