CVE-2026-87647 in Chrome
Summary
by MITRE • 09/09/2026
Uninitialized resource in GPU in Google Chrome prior to 153.0.8010.36 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the renderer process to read memory outside the sandbox via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: High)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/09/2026
The vulnerability identified as an uninitialized resource issue within the Graphics Processing Unit subsystem of Google Chrome prior to version 153.0.8010.36 represents a critical failure in memory management and state initialization protocols. This flaw specifically affects the rendering engine's interaction with hardware acceleration components, where certain GPU resources are allocated but not properly initialized before being accessed or utilized by subsequent operations. In modern web browsers, the renderer process operates within a strict sandbox environment designed to isolate untrusted content from sensitive system data. However, when an uninitialized resource is introduced into this pipeline, it can lead to undefined behavior that bypasses these isolation boundaries. The core technical flaw lies in the failure to zero out or properly set default values for GPU memory buffers or context states before they are exposed to web content via JavaScript APIs such as WebGL or WebGPU. This oversight allows a crafted HTML page containing malicious scripts to exploit this gap, effectively reading from or writing to memory regions that should remain inaccessible due to sandbox restrictions.
From an operational perspective, the impact of this vulnerability is severe because it enables arbitrary code execution and data exfiltration under specific conditions. An attacker who has already compromised the renderer process through a separate initial vector can leverage this uninitialized resource flaw to escape the browser's security perimeter. By carefully crafting input that triggers the use of these improperly initialized GPU resources, the attacker gains the ability to read memory outside the sandbox. This capability allows for the extraction of sensitive information such as cookies, session tokens, passwords, and other private data stored in adjacent memory spaces. Furthermore, depending on the specific implementation details and operating system protections, this could potentially lead to full remote code execution if combined with additional exploitation techniques targeting kernel or browser process vulnerabilities. The severity is rated high by Chromium security teams due to the direct path it provides from web content to privileged memory access, undermining one of the primary defenses against drive-by download attacks and cross-site scripting exploits that escalate privileges.
This vulnerability aligns closely with CWE-457, which describes the use of an uninitialized variable, as well as CWE-120, involving buffer overflows without bounds checking in certain contexts where memory corruption occurs due to improper initialization leading to out-of-bounds access. In terms of attack taxonomy, this falls under MITRE ATT&CK technique T1059, Command and Scripting Interpreter, specifically when used for initial access or privilege escalation via browser exploitation. It also relates to T1211, Exploitation for Defense Evasion, as the attacker uses the vulnerability to bypass sandbox controls that are designed to prevent such evasion. The lack of proper initialization serves as a foothold for further lateral movement within the victim's system if the renderer process is not adequately isolated from other browser processes or host resources.
Mitigation strategies primarily involve applying the official patch provided in Google Chrome version 153.0.8010.36 and later, which addresses the root cause by ensuring all GPU-related resources are correctly initialized before use. Organizations should enforce automatic update policies to ensure that end-user devices remain protected against known browser vulnerabilities. Additionally, security administrators can implement content security policies and sandboxing enhancements at the enterprise level to limit the capabilities of renderer processes even if a vulnerability is present. Monitoring for unusual network traffic patterns or memory access anomalies in endpoint detection systems may also help identify attempts to exploit this specific flaw before significant damage occurs. Regular audits of browser configurations and disabling unnecessary hardware acceleration features can serve as temporary compensating controls until updates are fully deployed across all endpoints.