CVE-2026-78914 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 08/25/2026
Uninitialized resource in Skia in Google Chrome prior to 152.0.7977.65 allowed a remote attacker to potentially read memory inside the sandbox via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Low)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/25/2026
The vulnerability identified involves an uninitialized resource within the Skia graphics library, which serves as the core 2D graphics engine for Google Chrome prior to version 152.0.7977.65. This flaw represents a classic memory safety issue where a variable or data structure is utilized before being properly initialized with a defined value. In the context of browser security, such errors are particularly dangerous because they can lead to unpredictable behavior depending on whatever residual data happens to reside in that memory location at runtime. The attack vector requires a remote attacker to craft an HTML page containing malicious code designed to trigger this specific uninitialized resource condition within Skia during rendering operations.
From a technical perspective, the exploitation of this vulnerability relies on the browser's handling of graphics primitives and image processing tasks managed by Skia. When the engine processes crafted input that leads to the use of the uninitialized variable, it may read from arbitrary memory addresses rather than expected safe buffers. This behavior aligns with CWE-457, which classifies the use of an uninitialized variable as a distinct weakness in software design and implementation. The severity is rated as Low by Chromium security standards because while the potential for information disclosure exists, successful exploitation typically requires precise conditions to control what memory contents are read, making it less straightforward than high-severity remote code execution flaws.
The operational impact centers on the potential for an attacker to perform a sandbox escape or at least bypass certain isolation boundaries through side-channel effects or direct memory reads. Although the primary risk is reading memory inside the browser's sandboxed process, this can potentially lead to further exploitation if combined with other vulnerabilities or used to leak sensitive data such as cookies, session tokens, or internal application state. This scenario maps closely to MITRE ATT&CK technique T1074, specifically Data Staged or Local Data Dumping, where an attacker attempts to gather information from the local system environment through unauthorized memory access. The sandbox architecture is designed to prevent arbitrary code execution, but memory disclosure can still compromise confidentiality guarantees if sensitive data resides in accessible regions of process memory.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve updating Google Chrome to version 152.0.7977.65 or later, where the underlying Skia library has been patched to ensure all resources are properly initialized before use. Developers and system administrators should prioritize patching cycles for browsers that handle untrusted web content extensively. Additionally, defense-in-depth measures such as enabling strict Content Security Policies can help mitigate some downstream effects by limiting what scripts can do even if memory is partially exposed. While this specific vulnerability does not typically allow full remote code execution on its own, it underscores the importance of maintaining up-to-date browser versions to close gaps in memory safety that could be leveraged for reconnaissance or further attacks against users accessing malicious web pages.