CVE-2024-7965
Google Chromium V8 Inappropriate Implementation Vulnerability
Description
CVE-2024-7965 is a high-severity vulnerability (CVSS 8.8) in Google Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine, specifically involving inappropriate implementation that leads to heap corruption. Affecting Chrome versions prior to 128.0.6613.84 and Microsoft Edge Chromium prior to 128.0.2739.42, this flaw allows a remote attacker to potentially exploit heap corruption through a crafted HTML page. The vulnerability has been added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, confirming active exploitation in the wild. With an EPSS score of 27.08% (96.3rd percentile), this vulnerability ranks significantly higher than the vast majority of CVEs in terms of exploitation probability.
KEV Information
CVSS Score
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:HOpen in CalculatorAffected Products
| Vendor | Product | Version |
|---|---|---|
| chrome | < 128.0.6613.84 | |
| microsoft | edge chromium | < 128.0.2739.42 |
Multiple CVSS Assessments
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
References
- https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2024/08/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_21.html(Release Notes)
- https://issues.chromium.org/issues/356196918(Permissions Required)
- https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2024-7965(US Government Resource)
Weakness Type
Heap Corruption via Inappropriate Implementation
This vulnerability stems from an inappropriate implementation in V8, Google Chrome's high-performance JavaScript and WebAssembly engine. The flaw allows attackers to trigger heap corruption, a class of memory safety issues where data on the heap memory region is overwritten in unintended ways. Heap corruption vulnerabilities are particularly dangerous because they can enable attackers to execute arbitrary code, escalate privileges, or cause denial of service. In the context of a browser engine like V8 that processes untrusted JavaScript code from web pages, heap corruption represents a critical attack surface that can be triggered simply by visiting a malicious website.
Impact Analysis
The CVSS score of 8.8 (High) reflects the serious nature of this vulnerability, with complete compromise possible across all three security pillars: confidentiality, integrity, and availability. Confidentiality impact is rated High, meaning an attacker who successfully exploits heap corruption in V8 could read sensitive data from the browser process, including session tokens, stored credentials, and content from other tabs. Integrity impact is also rated High, as heap corruption can be leveraged to execute arbitrary code within the browser's renderer process, potentially modifying data or installing persistent malware. Availability impact is High as well, since exploitation can crash the browser or render it unusable.
From a business perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risk to any organization whose employees use Chrome or Chromium-based browsers. The EPSS score of 27.08% places it in the 96.3rd percentile, indicating that exploitation is far more likely than for the average vulnerability. Its inclusion in the KEV catalog confirms that threat actors are actively weaponizing this flaw, though the ransomware association remains unknown. Organizations that delay patching expose themselves to drive-by download attacks where simply visiting a compromised or malicious website could lead to full system compromise.
Exploit Maturity
This vulnerability has confirmed active exploitation in the wild, as evidenced by its inclusion in CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog with a remediation deadline of September 18, 2024. The EPSS score of 27.08% (96.3rd percentile) further underscores the high likelihood of exploitation, placing it well above the threshold that typically indicates widespread targeting. While the specific ransomware association is listed as unknown, the active exploitation status means that threat actors have already developed and deployed working exploits. Google's Chromium bug tracker entry for the underlying issue (issues.chromium.org/issues/356196918) is access-restricted, a standard practice when vulnerabilities are under active exploitation to prevent further weaponization. The combination of active exploitation, high EPSS score, and the ubiquity of Chrome and Chromium-based browsers makes this one of the most urgently actionable vulnerabilities from this period.
Remediation
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Update Google Chrome immediately — Upgrade to Chrome version 128.0.6613.84 or later. Open Chrome, navigate to Settings > About Chrome, and allow the browser to check for and install updates. Restart the browser to apply the patch.
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Update Microsoft Edge — If your organization uses Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based), upgrade to version 128.0.2739.42 or later. Edge can be updated through Settings > About Microsoft Edge or via enterprise deployment tools like WSUS or Intune.
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Enable automatic browser updates — Ensure that Chrome and Edge are configured for automatic updates across your fleet. For enterprise environments, use Chrome Browser Cloud Management or Group Policy to enforce update policies and prevent users from running outdated versions.
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Deploy browser isolation for high-risk users — While patching is underway, consider implementing browser isolation solutions for users who frequently access untrusted web content. This provides an additional layer of protection by executing web content in a sandboxed environment separate from the endpoint.
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Monitor for indicators of compromise — Review endpoint detection and response (EDR) logs for signs of unusual browser process behavior, unexpected child processes spawned by Chrome, or memory access anomalies that could indicate exploitation attempts.
Technical Details
The CVSS v3.1 vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H breaks down as follows: Attack Vector (Network) indicates the vulnerability is exploitable remotely over the internet, requiring no local access. Attack Complexity (Low) means the attack does not require special conditions or preparation beyond delivering a crafted HTML page. Privileges Required (None) confirms that no authentication or authorization is needed to attempt exploitation. User Interaction (Required) is the single mitigating factor — a victim must navigate to or be redirected to a page containing the malicious payload. Scope (Unchanged) means the exploit's impact is confined to the vulnerable component's security scope, though in practice, further sandbox escapes could extend the damage. All three impact metrics — Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability — are rated High, reflecting full compromise potential.
The vulnerability lies in V8's handling of specific operations where an inappropriate implementation leads to heap corruption. V8 compiles and executes JavaScript and WebAssembly code using just-in-time (JIT) compilation, and implementation errors in the JIT compiler or runtime can create conditions where memory is written to or read from incorrect heap locations. An attacker crafts an HTML page containing JavaScript that triggers the specific code path with the inappropriate implementation, causing the V8 engine to corrupt its heap. This corrupted state can then be leveraged to achieve arbitrary read/write primitives, ultimately enabling code execution within the Chrome renderer process. The exploit requires the victim to visit the attacker-controlled page, which can be delivered through phishing emails, malvertising, or compromised legitimate websites.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CVE-2024-7965?
CVE-2024-7965 is a high-severity heap corruption vulnerability in Google Chrome's V8 JavaScript engine caused by an inappropriate implementation. It allows a remote attacker to potentially execute arbitrary code by luring a user to a specially crafted HTML page. The vulnerability has been actively exploited in the wild and affects Chrome versions before 128.0.6613.84.
How can attackers exploit this vulnerability?
Attackers exploit this vulnerability by creating a malicious web page that triggers the heap corruption flaw in V8. When a user visits this page using an unpatched Chrome or Chromium-based browser, the attacker's code executes within the browser process. This can be delivered through phishing links, compromised websites, or malicious advertisements.
Which browsers are affected by CVE-2024-7965?
Google Chrome versions prior to 128.0.6613.84 and Microsoft Edge (Chromium-based) versions prior to 128.0.2739.42 are affected. Any other Chromium-based browser that has not incorporated the fix from the Chromium project is also potentially vulnerable.
How do I protect my organization from CVE-2024-7965?
The primary protection is to update all Chrome and Chromium-based browsers to the patched versions immediately. Enable automatic browser updates across your organization, and use endpoint management tools to verify compliance. For additional defense in depth, consider browser isolation solutions and monitor EDR logs for signs of exploitation.
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