CVE-2019-5808 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE
Use after free in Blink in Google Chrome prior to 74.0.3729.108 allowed a remote attacker to potentially exploit heap corruption via a crafted HTML page.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/25/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2019-5808 represents a critical use-after-free condition within the Blink rendering engine of Google Chrome, affecting versions prior to 74.0.3729.108. This flaw resides in the browser's core component responsible for processing and rendering web content, making it particularly dangerous as it can be exploited through malicious web pages without requiring any user interaction beyond visiting the compromised site. The vulnerability stems from improper memory management where a freed memory block is still being referenced or accessed by subsequent operations, creating a potential avenue for arbitrary code execution.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability involves the Blink engine's handling of specific HTML elements and their associated memory structures. When processing crafted HTML content, the engine fails to properly manage object lifecycles, leading to situations where memory allocated to certain objects is freed but references to those objects persist within the execution flow. This memory corruption scenario allows attackers to manipulate the heap layout and potentially overwrite critical memory regions. The flaw specifically manifests when the browser encounters particular combinations of DOM elements and JavaScript interactions that trigger the improper memory deallocation sequence.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to users who browse the internet regularly, as it requires no user interaction beyond visiting a malicious website. The remote exploitation capability means that attackers can leverage this flaw through drive-by downloads or compromised websites without needing to convince users to perform specific actions. The heap corruption resulting from this use-after-free condition can be leveraged to execute arbitrary code with the privileges of the Chrome process, potentially leading to full system compromise. The vulnerability aligns with CWE-416, which specifically addresses use-after-free conditions in software implementations, and demonstrates how such flaws can be exploited in browser environments to achieve privilege escalation.
The attack surface for CVE-2019-5808 extends across all affected Chrome versions, making it particularly concerning for organizations and individuals who have not updated their browsers to the patched version. Security researchers have noted that the exploitation of this vulnerability typically involves crafting specific HTML payloads that trigger the memory management error, often utilizing JavaScript to manipulate DOM objects in ways that expose the underlying heap corruption. The vulnerability's classification under the ATT&CK framework would likely map to techniques involving exploitation of vulnerabilities and privilege escalation, as it provides a pathway for attackers to gain elevated system privileges through browser-based attacks.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability primarily involve immediate browser updates to version 74.0.3729.108 or later, which contains the necessary memory management fixes to prevent the improper deallocation sequence. Organizations should implement comprehensive patch management processes to ensure all browser installations are updated promptly. Additional protective measures include deploying web application firewalls, implementing content security policies, and utilizing sandboxing mechanisms to limit the potential impact of successful exploitation attempts. The vulnerability also underscores the importance of regular security audits and penetration testing of browser-based applications to identify similar memory management issues that could be exploited by attackers.