CVE-2026-79071 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 08/26/2026
Race condition in GPU in Google Chrome prior to 152.0.7977.65 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the renderer process to potentially execute arbitrary code outside the sandbox via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Medium)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/26/2026
The vulnerability described represents a critical race condition within the graphics processing unit subsystem of Google Chrome, specifically affecting versions prior to 152.0.7977.65. This flaw arises from improper synchronization mechanisms when handling concurrent operations between the browser's renderer process and the GPU driver or hardware acceleration components. In modern web browsers, the renderer process operates within a strict sandbox environment designed to isolate untrusted content from sensitive system resources. However, this race condition allows an attacker who has already achieved code execution within the compromised renderer process to exploit timing discrepancies in how memory buffers are allocated, accessed, and freed by the GPU subsystem. By carefully crafting HTML pages that trigger specific sequences of graphics commands or shader executions, an adversary can manipulate these timing windows to perform out-of-bounds writes or reads on kernel-mode structures associated with the GPU driver.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability falls under the category of CWE-362, which denotes concurrent execution using shared resources with improper synchronization. The core issue lies in the lack of atomic operations or proper locking mechanisms when transitioning data between user-space renderer processes and kernel-space GPU drivers. When multiple threads attempt to modify shared state without adequate mutual exclusion, it creates a window where memory corruption can occur. In this specific context, the attacker leverages their existing foothold within the sandboxed renderer to send maliciously crafted commands that race against legitimate browser operations. This allows them to corrupt internal data structures used by the GPU driver, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution in kernel mode or outside the confines of the Chrome sandbox. The severity is classified as medium because while it requires an initial compromise of the renderer process, the resulting privilege escalation significantly expands the attack surface from a contained web context to full system control.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for users relying on Google Chrome for browsing untrusted websites or viewing malicious content embedded in emails and social media platforms. An attacker can craft a webpage that, when loaded by the victim's browser, exploits this race condition to escape the sandbox boundary. Once outside the sandbox, the attacker gains elevated privileges equivalent to those of the GPU driver process, which typically runs with high-level system access. This enables the execution of arbitrary code on the host operating system, allowing for data exfiltration, installation of persistent malware, or further lateral movement within a networked environment. The ability to execute code outside the sandbox fundamentally undermines one of the primary security models employed by modern web browsers, rendering other mitigations such as site isolation less effective against this specific vector.
This vulnerability aligns with several techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, particularly those related to privilege escalation and defense evasion. It corresponds to T1068 Exploitation for Privilege Escalation, where an attacker leverages a software flaw to gain higher-level permissions on a system. Additionally, it relates to T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution, as the attack is triggered by user interaction with a crafted web page that executes malicious code in the client's environment. The use of GPU acceleration features also places this within the context of hardware-assisted execution paths, highlighting the risks associated with complex interactions between software applications and low-level system components like graphics drivers.
To mitigate this risk, organizations and individual users must ensure that Google Chrome is updated to version 152.0.7977.65 or later immediately upon availability. This update contains patches that enforce stricter synchronization protocols within the GPU subsystem, preventing the race condition from being exploited. For enterprise environments, implementing application whitelisting can help restrict the execution of unauthorized binaries even if an attacker manages to escape the sandbox. Furthermore, disabling hardware acceleration in Chrome settings may serve as a temporary workaround for high-risk scenarios where immediate patching is not feasible, although this comes at the cost of performance and user experience. Regular security audits and monitoring for anomalous behavior from renderer processes can also aid in detecting attempts to exploit such vulnerabilities before they result in full system compromise.