CVE-2014-7936 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Use-after-free vulnerability in the ZoomBubbleView::Close function in browser/ui/views/location_bar/zoom_bubble_view.cc in the Views implementation in Google Chrome before 40.0.2214.91 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted document that triggers improper maintenance of a zoom bubble.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/06/2022
The CVE-2014-7936 vulnerability represents a critical use-after-free flaw within Google Chrome's Views-based user interface implementation, specifically affecting the ZoomBubbleView::Close function in the location bar component. This vulnerability exists in Chrome versions prior to 40.0.2214.91 and demonstrates a classic memory safety issue that can be exploited by remote attackers through carefully crafted web documents. The flaw manifests when the browser improperly manages the lifecycle of zoom bubble UI elements, creating conditions where freed memory regions are accessed after being deallocated, leading to unpredictable behavior and potential system compromise.
The technical nature of this vulnerability aligns with CWE-416, which categorizes use-after-free conditions as a fundamental memory safety issue where program code continues to reference memory locations after they have been freed by the system. The vulnerability specifically impacts the ZoomBubbleView::Close function within the browser/ui/views/location_bar/zoom_bubble_view.cc file, indicating that the issue occurs during the cleanup process of zoom bubble UI elements that appear when users interact with page zoom functionality. This implementation flaw suggests that the Views framework's memory management for UI components fails to properly handle reference counting or object lifecycle transitions during the close operation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple denial of service, as the description indicates potential for unspecified other impacts that could include arbitrary code execution or privilege escalation. Remote attackers can leverage this flaw by crafting malicious web documents that trigger the zoom bubble display and subsequent close operations, potentially causing the browser to access freed memory locations and execute arbitrary code. This attack vector represents a significant threat to browser security, as it requires no local privileges and can be delivered through standard web browsing activities, making it particularly dangerous in real-world scenarios.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-7936 primarily focus on immediate browser updates to versions 40.0.2214.91 and later, which contain the necessary patches to address the memory management issues in the ZoomBubbleView::Close function. System administrators and security teams should prioritize deployment of these updates across all affected systems, particularly in enterprise environments where Chrome browsers are extensively used. Additional protective measures include implementing browser security policies that restrict access to untrusted websites, enabling sandboxing features, and deploying web application firewalls that can detect and block suspicious document patterns that might trigger this vulnerability. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this vulnerability under T1059 for command and scripting interpreter usage, as attackers might leverage the memory corruption to execute malicious payloads through compromised browser processes, while also potentially utilizing T1203 for legitimate system service exploitation during the attack lifecycle.