CVE-2023-2722 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 05/16/2023
Use after free in Autofill UI in Google Chrome on Android prior to 113.0.5672.126 allowed a remote attacker to potentially exploit heap corruption via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: High)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/09/2023
This vulnerability represents a critical use-after-free condition within the Autofill user interface component of Google Chrome on Android platforms. The flaw exists in the memory management handling of autofill elements, where freed memory blocks are still being accessed or referenced by subsequent operations. Such conditions typically arise when software continues to use pointers to memory that has already been deallocated, creating opportunities for memory corruption that can be exploited by malicious actors. The vulnerability affects Chrome versions prior to 113.0.5672.126, indicating a specific window of exposure for users running older versions of the browser.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability occurs within the Autofill UI subsystem, which handles user data collection and form filling operations. When processing crafted HTML pages, the browser fails to properly manage the lifecycle of memory objects associated with autofill elements, leading to situations where memory addresses become invalid while still being referenced. This memory corruption scenario can manifest through improper object cleanup procedures during form element processing, where the autofill system attempts to access memory that has already been freed due to incomplete garbage collection or race conditions in the rendering pipeline. The Chromium security severity rating of High reflects the potential for remote code execution through this memory corruption vector.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple browser instability, as it creates a pathway for remote attackers to potentially execute arbitrary code on affected devices. Attackers can craft malicious HTML pages that trigger the vulnerable code path during normal browsing operations, leveraging the use-after-free condition to overwrite memory structures or inject malicious code into the browser process. This presents significant risk to Android users who may encounter such pages through phishing campaigns, compromised websites, or malicious advertisements. The exploitability is enhanced by the fact that the vulnerability operates within the browser's rendering context, requiring no special privileges or user interaction beyond visiting a malicious website.
Security researchers categorize this vulnerability under CWE-416, which specifically addresses the use of freed memory condition, and the ATT&CK framework would classify this under T1059.007 for Browser Scripting and potentially T1078.004 for Valid Accounts if exploitation leads to credential theft through the autofill functionality. The remediation strategy involves updating to Chrome version 113.0.5672.126 or later, which includes memory management fixes that properly handle the lifecycle of autofill UI elements. Organizations should prioritize immediate patch deployment and monitor for any related exploitation attempts in their networks. Additionally, browser hardening measures such as sandboxing and strict content security policies can provide additional defense-in-depth against similar memory corruption vulnerabilities. The vulnerability demonstrates the importance of proper memory management in browser components and highlights the need for continuous security auditing of user interface elements that handle sensitive data operations.