CVE-2026-102306 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 09/29/2026
Use after free in Bluetooth in Google Chrome prior to 154.0.8037.92 allowed a remote attacker to potentially execute arbitrary code outside the sandbox via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: High)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/29/2026
The vulnerability identified as a use-after-free condition within the Bluetooth subsystem of Google Chrome prior to version 154.0.8037.92 represents a critical memory management error that compromises the integrity and confidentiality of user data. This flaw arises when the application continues to reference a pointer after the memory it points to has been deallocated or freed, leading to undefined behavior during runtime execution. In the context of web browsers, such vulnerabilities are particularly dangerous because they can be triggered by maliciously crafted content hosted on remote websites, allowing an attacker to exploit the browser's internal state without requiring any direct interaction from the user beyond visiting a specific page.
From a technical perspective, this use-after-free issue is rooted in improper handling of object lifecycles within the Bluetooth API implementation. When resources associated with Bluetooth connections or advertisements are released, the application fails to nullify references or update pointers accordingly. Consequently, subsequent operations that attempt to access these stale pointers may read from or write to arbitrary memory locations. This misalignment between pointer validity and actual memory allocation creates an opportunity for attackers to manipulate heap metadata or overwrite critical function pointers, which can lead to code execution with the privileges of the browser process.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential to bypass Chrome's sandboxing mechanisms. Modern browsers employ strict sandboxes to isolate web content from the underlying operating system and user files. However, a successful exploitation of this use-after-free flaw could allow an attacker to escape this isolation boundary. By achieving arbitrary code execution outside the sandbox, an adversary gains the ability to run malicious payloads with elevated privileges, potentially leading to full system compromise, data exfiltration, or installation of persistent malware on the victim's device. This capability transforms a simple web-based attack vector into a high-severity threat capable of undermining fundamental security assumptions.
Industry standards classify this type of vulnerability under CWE-416, which denotes Use After Free errors resulting from improper memory management practices. The exploitation technique aligns with MITRE ATT&CK tactics related to Initial Access and Privilege Escalation, specifically leveraging browser vulnerabilities to establish a foothold within an enterprise or personal network environment. Attackers often utilize such flaws in conjunction with other techniques like social engineering via crafted HTML pages to maximize the success rate of their exploits against targeted individuals or organizations.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve immediate software updates to ensure that all instances of Google Chrome are upgraded to version 154.0.8037.92 or later, where these memory management issues have been rectified by developers through rigorous code reviews and automated testing protocols. Additionally, users should enable automatic update features within the browser settings to receive security patches promptly as they become available. For enterprise environments, implementing application whitelisting and restricting script execution on untrusted domains can provide an additional layer of defense against exploitation attempts that rely on executing arbitrary JavaScript or HTML content from remote sources.