CVE-2026-110922 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 10/16/2026
Use after free in Prerender in Google Chrome prior to 155.0.8059.84 allowed a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code inside the sandbox via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Critical)
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/16/2026
The vulnerability identified as a use-after-free flaw within the Prerender component of Google Chrome prior to version 155.0.8059.84 represents a critical memory safety issue that undermines the browser's sandboxing mechanisms. This specific class of error occurs when the application continues to reference a memory block after it has been freed, leading to undefined behavior that can be exploited by malicious actors. In this context, an attacker could craft a specially designed HTML page containing JavaScript or other web technologies that trigger the premature deallocation of resources managed by the Prerendering subsystem while those resources are still being accessed elsewhere in the browser's execution flow. The presence of such a flaw allows for arbitrary code execution within the restricted environment of the renderer process, which is typically isolated to prevent full system compromise.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-416, Use After Free, which describes situations where pointers are used after they have been freed or deallocated. The Prerender feature in Chrome is designed to load and render web pages in the background before the user explicitly navigates to them, thereby improving perceived performance. However, if the lifecycle management of these prerendered contexts is not strictly synchronized with memory allocation and deallocation routines, race conditions or logical errors can arise. When a remote attacker hosts a malicious webpage that induces this state, they can manipulate the heap layout to overwrite adjacent data structures or execute arbitrary instructions through dangling pointers. This exploitation path effectively bypasses standard security controls because it operates within the renderer process sandbox, leveraging the trust placed in browser internals by web content.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe due to its potential for remote code execution without user interaction beyond visiting a malicious site. Although Chrome employs multiple layers of defense such as Site Isolation and strict origin policies, a successful exploitation of a use-after-free bug can lead to sandbox escape or at least the compromise of sensitive data within that specific renderer process. Attackers could potentially steal cookies, session tokens, or other authentication credentials stored in memory by web applications running under the same site isolation context. Furthermore, depending on the browser version and operating system protections like DEP or ASLR, this flaw might serve as a stepping stone for further exploitation to achieve arbitrary code execution with higher privileges outside the sandbox entirely.
This incident is categorized under MITRE ATT&CK technique T1203, Exploitation for Client Execution, which covers scenarios where adversaries exploit vulnerabilities in client software to execute malicious payloads on victim systems. The critical severity rating assigned by Chromium reflects the high likelihood of successful exploitation and the significant impact on confidentiality, integrity, and availability. To mitigate this risk, users must ensure that their browsers are updated to version 155.0.8059.84 or later immediately upon release. Additionally, organizations should enforce strict update policies for endpoint devices running Chrome to minimize exposure windows. Security teams should also monitor network traffic for indicators of compromise associated with drive-by download attacks targeting browser vulnerabilities and consider implementing application whitelisting or advanced threat protection solutions that can detect anomalous behavior resulting from memory corruption exploits.