CVE-2026-87452 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 09/09/2026
Incorrect authorization in GPU in Google Chrome on on Mac prior to 153.0.8010.36 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the renderer process to potentially obtain cross-origin data via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Medium)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/09/2026
The vulnerability identified as an incorrect authorization issue within the GPU subsystem of Google Chrome on macOS represents a significant breach in browser isolation mechanisms, specifically affecting versions prior to 153.0.8010.36. This flaw stems from insufficient access control checks when handling graphics processing unit operations, which are critical for rendering web content efficiently. In modern browsers like Chrome, the architecture relies heavily on process separation to contain potential security breaches within individual renderer processes. When a malicious website is loaded, it executes in an isolated sandboxed environment known as the renderer process. The fundamental premise of this isolation model is that code running inside one tab or origin cannot access data from another unless explicitly permitted by strict cross-origin policies and authorization checks. However, the defect in the GPU component allowed for a bypass of these intended boundaries, creating a pathway through which compromised renderers could leak sensitive information across origins.
From a technical perspective, this vulnerability falls under the category of improper privilege management or broken access control, aligning with CWE-269: Improper Privilege Management and CWE-862: Missing Authorization in many security classification frameworks. The core issue lies in how the GPU driver interface interacts with the browser's internal state regarding user identity and origin context. When a renderer process requests graphical operations that involve accessing memory or resources associated with other contexts, the system failed to adequately verify whether the requesting process had legitimate authorization for those specific resources. This oversight allowed an attacker who had already achieved code execution within a renderer process through another vulnerability, such as a sandbox escape or arbitrary JavaScript execution via crafted HTML, to exploit this gap in logic. By crafting specific GPU commands that referenced memory regions belonging to other origins, the attacker could read data that should have remained inaccessible, effectively breaking the cross-origin isolation model that protects user privacy and session integrity.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe because it facilitates a remote code execution scenario leading to information disclosure without any direct interaction from the victim beyond visiting a malicious webpage. An adversary can host a crafted HTML page containing JavaScript designed to trigger these unauthorized GPU operations. When an unsuspecting user visits this page, the browser's renderer process executes the script within its sandboxed environment. Due to the authorization flaw, the script can then issue commands that access cross-origin data stored in memory or retrieved from other tabs and windows open by the same user. This could lead to the theft of sensitive information such as session cookies, authentication tokens, personal identifiable information, or confidential documents being viewed in other browser contexts. The severity is rated as medium within the Chromium security framework because while it requires a prior compromise of the renderer process, once that condition is met, the lateral movement into cross-origin data access significantly amplifies the potential damage to user privacy and account security.
This type of vulnerability maps directly to several techniques in the MITRE ATT&CK for Enterprise knowledge base, particularly T1059: Command and Scripting Interpreter if considering the initial execution vector via JavaScript, but more critically it relates to T1046: Network Service Discovery or data exfiltration methods that rely on side-channel attacks or memory scraping. In the context of browser exploitation chains, this flaw serves as a critical step in post-exploitation activities where an attacker seeks to escalate privileges from a low-privilege renderer process to access higher-value targets like other tabs or local storage. The ability to read cross-origin data undermines the trust model that web applications rely upon for security, allowing attackers to perform session hijacking or credential theft on a large scale if users are tricked into visiting malicious sites while logged into sensitive services in separate tabs.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve applying the vendor-provided software updates immediately. Google has addressed this issue by implementing stricter authorization checks within the GPU process communication layer, ensuring that any request for graphical resources originating from a renderer process is validated against strict origin and permission policies before execution. Administrators should ensure that all endpoints running Chrome are updated to version 153.0.8010.36 or later to close this gap in access control logic. Additionally, users can reduce their exposure by employing browser extensions that enforce stricter content security policies or by utilizing separate profiles for different online activities to limit the blast radius of any potential renderer compromise. Regular patch management and keeping software up-to-date remain the most effective defenses against such zero-day style vulnerabilities that exploit complex system interactions within modern web browsers.