CVE-2018-6032 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Insufficient policy enforcement in Blink in Google Chrome prior to 64.0.3282.119 allowed a remote attacker to potentially leak user cross-origin data via a crafted HTML page.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/03/2023
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-6032 represents a critical security flaw within the Blink rendering engine that powers Google Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers. This issue stems from inadequate enforcement of security policies that govern cross-origin resource access, creating a potential avenue for remote attackers to exploit the browser's security model. The vulnerability specifically affects Chrome versions prior to 64.0.3282.119, where the browser's implementation of the same-origin policy was insufficiently robust to prevent unauthorized data leakage between different origins.
The technical nature of this vulnerability lies in the browser's failure to properly validate and enforce access controls when processing crafted HTML content. When a malicious actor constructs a specific HTML page designed to exploit this weakness, the browser's rendering engine may inadvertently permit access to cross-origin data that should normally be restricted. This occurs due to a flaw in how Blink handles certain DOM operations and resource access patterns that are typically protected by the browser's security sandbox. The vulnerability essentially allows an attacker to bypass the fundamental security boundary that separates different websites and prevents unauthorized data access.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple information disclosure, as it could enable sophisticated attacks where attackers gather sensitive user data from multiple origins. A remote attacker could craft malicious web pages that, when loaded in a victim's browser, would attempt to access and exfiltrate data from other websites the user has visited or is currently accessing. This type of cross-origin data leakage could potentially expose session tokens, personal information, or other sensitive data that should remain isolated between different web origins. The attack vector is particularly dangerous because it requires no local privileges and can be executed through standard web browsing activities.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily focus on updating to the patched version of Google Chrome, specifically version 64.0.3282.119 or later, which includes enhanced policy enforcement mechanisms. Security researchers and organizations should implement proactive monitoring to ensure all affected systems are updated promptly, as this vulnerability could be actively exploited in the wild. Browser vendors and security teams should also consider implementing additional security measures such as strict content security policies and enhanced sandboxing mechanisms to provide defense-in-depth. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-284, which addresses insufficient access control, and may relate to techniques described in the ATT&CK framework under privilege escalation and credential access tactics, though the specific vector involves browser-based data leakage rather than direct system compromise. Organizations should also review their web application security practices and implement proper origin validation to minimize potential exploitation surfaces.