CVE-2026-79109 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 08/26/2026
Improper input validation in Printing 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 identified as an improper input validation flaw within Google Chrome's printing subsystem prior to version 152.0.7977.65 represents a significant breach in browser isolation mechanisms. This defect specifically affects the rendering engine and its interaction with system-level print services, creating a pathway for privilege escalation from a sandboxed environment to the host operating system. The core technical issue stems from insufficient sanitization or boundary checking of data passed between the untrusted renderer process and the trusted browser utility processes responsible for handling printing operations. When a user interacts with a maliciously crafted HTML page hosted on an attacker-controlled server, the browser attempts to render content that includes complex print-related directives or embedded objects. Due to the validation gap, these inputs are not properly constrained before being processed by higher-privilege components, allowing structured data to be interpreted in unintended ways.
From a technical perspective, this flaw leverages the complexity of modern web browsers where multiple processes communicate via inter-process communication channels. The renderer process operates within a strict sandbox designed to prevent arbitrary code execution and limit access to sensitive system resources. However, when rendering content that triggers printing functionality, data is often serialized and sent to a separate utility process with elevated privileges to interface with the operating system's print spooler or driver infrastructure. If input validation fails at this boundary, an attacker can inject crafted payloads that exploit type confusion, buffer overflows, or logic errors within these privileged components. The Chromium security team classified this issue as medium severity because while it requires a specific user interaction such as visiting a malicious page and potentially triggering print actions, the resulting impact is severe due to the escape from sandbox confinement.
The operational impact of this vulnerability allows a remote attacker who has successfully compromised the renderer process through initial exploitation vectors like cross-site scripting or other rendering bugs to execute arbitrary code outside the sandbox. This effectively breaks the fundamental security model of Chrome, which relies on isolating web content to prevent malware installation and data theft. By escaping the sandbox, an attacker gains the ability to interact with local files, install persistent backdoors, exfiltrate sensitive information such as cookies or credentials stored in memory, and potentially pivot further into a networked environment. The attack vector is classified as remote because it can be triggered simply by directing a victim to a malicious website, although some user interaction may be required depending on browser settings regarding automatic printing prompts.
This vulnerability aligns with Common Weakness Enumeration category CWE-20 Improper Input Validation and falls under the MITRE ATT&CK technique T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter or potentially T1203 Exploitation for Client Execution, as it involves executing code on a client system through web-based delivery. Mitigation strategies primarily involve updating Google Chrome to version 152.0.7977.65 or later where these validation checks have been hardened and boundary conditions are strictly enforced. For organizations deploying browsers at scale, implementing application whitelisting can help mitigate the impact by preventing unauthorized executables from running even if sandbox escape occurs. Additionally, disabling automatic printing features in browser policies reduces the attack surface by removing one of the primary triggers for this code path. Security teams should also monitor for unusual process creation events originating from Chrome utility processes as an indicator of compromise related to such sandbox escapes.