CVE-2026-79154 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 08/26/2026
Missing authorization in DevTools in Google Chrome prior to 152.0.7977.65 allowed a remote attacker leveraging social engineering to obtain sensitive information via UI Interaction. (Chromium security severity: Medium)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/26/2026
The vulnerability identified as missing authorization within the developer tools of Google Chrome represents a significant flaw in the browser's internal access control mechanisms, specifically affecting versions prior to 152.0.7977.65. This issue stems from an improper implementation of privilege checks when interacting with sensitive debugging interfaces that are typically intended for developers or advanced users. In standard web application security models, such as those defined by the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP), this aligns closely with CWE-862, which describes Missing Authorization. The core technical flaw lies in the failure to verify whether the entity initiating a request to these internal APIs possesses the necessary permissions or context to do so. While developer tools are often restricted from being accessed by standard web pages due to their powerful capabilities, this specific oversight allowed for an edge case where social engineering could bypass expected restrictions.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is primarily centered on information disclosure through user interaction rather than direct remote code execution. An attacker leveraging social engineering tactics can craft a malicious webpage or prompt that tricks the victim into performing actions within the browser environment. By exploiting the lack of proper authorization checks, the attacker can induce the Chrome DevTools to expose sensitive internal state data, such as cookies, local storage contents, or other session-specific information that should remain isolated from untrusted web content. This scenario is particularly dangerous because it relies on human error and manipulation rather than a purely technical exploit chain, making detection by automated security tools more difficult. The severity of this issue was classified as Medium in the Chromium project, reflecting its potential to compromise confidentiality without immediately granting full system control or causing denial of service conditions that would disrupt normal operations entirely.
From an offensive security perspective, this vulnerability maps directly to techniques observed in advanced persistent threat campaigns and social engineering attacks documented within the MITRE ATT&CK framework. Specifically, it relates to T1059, Command and Scripting Interpreter, when used for data exfiltration via browser APIs, or more accurately to information gathering phases where an attacker seeks to harvest credentials or session tokens from a victim's active browsing context. The attack vector requires the user to interact with the interface, which means it falls under CWE-20, Improper Input Validation, in conjunction with CWE-862. Attackers might use deceptive prompts that mimic legitimate browser dialogs or developer tool interactions to trick users into enabling features or confirming actions that inadvertently grant access to restricted data stores.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability focus heavily on patching and user education. The primary remediation is the immediate upgrade of Google Chrome to version 152.0.7977.65 or later, where these authorization checks have been reinforced to ensure that only authorized contexts can access sensitive developer tool functionalities. For organizations managing large fleets of browsers, enforcing automatic updates through enterprise management policies is critical to closing this window of exposure. Additionally, security awareness training should emphasize the risks of interacting with unexpected prompts within browser interfaces, particularly those requesting elevated permissions or mimicking development tools. Implementing strict Content Security Policies and restricting the use of experimental features can also reduce the attack surface available for such social engineering attempts. Regular auditing of browser configurations to ensure that developer tools are disabled in non-development environments further limits the potential impact if a user is successfully deceived into interacting with malicious content.