CVE CyberSecurity Database News

CVE-2022-4178 - In-Depth Analysis of Google Chrome Mojo Use-After-Free Vulnerability and Patch Overview

Poster -

Google Chrome, the world's most popular web browser, recently came under the scanner for a serious security vulnerability identified as CVE-2022-4178. The vulnerability stems from a Use-After-Free (UAF) issue in Google Chrome's Mojo system, which is a high-level inter-process communication (IPC) system responsible for handling micro-services and browser components' interactions. The vulnerability affects Google Chrome versions prior to 108..5359.71.

This article will provide a comprehensive analysis of the vulnerability - the nature of the issue, how it could potentially be exploited, code snippets demonstrating the exploit, relevant links to original references, and details about the steps taken by Google to mitigate the risk.

Vulnerability Details

The CVE-2022-4178 vulnerability is a Use-After-Free (UAF) security flaw that primarily affects the Mojo system in Google Chrome. The UAF occurs when memory, which has already been freed, is accessed or modified, potentially leading to heap corruption. A remote attacker who has successfully compromised the renderer process can exploit this UAF vulnerability by crafting a malicious HTML page, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution and rights escalation.

Chromium Security Severity for this vulnerability is classified as 'High,' necessitating prompt patch application.

Exploit Demonstration

Please note that the following code snippet is provided for educational purposes only and should not be used for malicious purposes.

An attacker would need to craft a specific HTML page that would manipulate the renderer process memory to exploit this vulnerability. A theoretical example of such an HTML page might look like this:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <script>
    const vulnTrigger = () => {
      //
      // Insert malicious JavaScript code here that triggers the
      // Chromium Use-After-Free (UAF) vulnerability
      //
    };
  </script>
</head>
<body onload="vulnTrigger();">
  <!-- Crafted HTML content that can be used to exploit the vulnerability -->
</body>
</html>

In this example, the onload event triggers the vulnTrigger() function, which would contain the malicious JavaScript code required to exploit the Chromium UAF vulnerability successfully.

To take advantage of this, the attacker may trick unsuspecting users into visiting the malicious web page, leading to potential compromise of the user's browser, sensitive information leak, or arbitrary code execution on the user's system.

1. Google Chrome Stable Channel Update Announcement: Chrome Releases Blog
2. NVD Vulnerability Details: NVD - CVE-2022-4178
3. Chromium Bugs and Issue Tracker: Google Chrome Issue Tracker

Mitigation and Patch

Google has promptly released a patch addressing the CVE-2022-4178 vulnerability, which is included in Google Chrome version 108..5359.71. Users should upgrade their Google Chrome installations to this version or any newer version to protect themselves against potential exploitation.

Conclusion

The CVE-2022-4178 vulnerability is a critical security issue that could potentially lead to significant consequences for users if exploited. Consequently, it is of utmost importance to ensure that Google Chrome is up-to-date, keeping in mind the latest security patches and updates. By updating Google Chrome, users can safeguard their browsing experience and prevent attacks that may exploit the vulnerability.

Timeline

Published on: 11/30/2022 00:15:00 UTC
Last modified on: 05/03/2023 12:16:00 UTC