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CVE-2020-15980

7.8 HIGH

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability allows a local attacker on Android devices to bypass Chrome's navigation restrictions using specially crafted Intents. It affects Google Chrome on Android versions prior to 86.0.4240.75. The attacker must have local access to the device to exploit this vulnerability.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:
  • Google Chrome
Versions: Versions prior to 86.0.4240.75
Operating Systems: Android
Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes
Notes: Only affects Chrome on Android, not desktop versions. Requires local attacker access.

📦 What is this software?

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Chrome by Google

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⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

An attacker with physical access could bypass Chrome's security restrictions to navigate to malicious websites or perform unauthorized actions within the browser context.

🟠

Likely Case

Malicious apps on the same device could exploit this to redirect Chrome to phishing sites or bypass content restrictions.

🟢

If Mitigated

With proper app isolation and Chrome updates, the risk is minimal as the attacker requires local access and the vulnerability is patched.

🌐 Internet-Facing: LOW - This requires local access to the device, not remote exploitation.
🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Local attackers on compromised devices could exploit this, but it requires physical or app-level access.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No
Weaponized: UNKNOWN
Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No
Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires crafting specific Intents and local access to the Android device.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 86.0.4240.75 and later

Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2020/10/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Open Google Play Store 2. Search for Chrome 3. Update to version 86.0.4240.75 or later 4. Restart Chrome

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable Chrome Intents

android

Restrict Chrome's ability to handle external intents through Android settings

Navigate to Android Settings > Apps > Chrome > Open by default > Clear defaults

🧯 If You Can't Patch

  • Restrict physical access to Android devices
  • Implement mobile device management (MDM) to control app installations

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check Chrome version in Settings > About Chrome. If version is below 86.0.4240.75, device is vulnerable.

Check Version:

chrome://version/ in Chrome browser

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm Chrome version is 86.0.4240.75 or higher in Settings > About Chrome.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

  • Unusual intent handling in Chrome logs
  • Unexpected navigation events

Network Indicators:

  • Chrome connecting to unexpected domains after local app interaction

SIEM Query:

source="chrome" AND (event="intent_handled" OR event="navigation_bypass")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2020-15980
CVSS v3 Score: 7.8 (HIGH)
CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Published: November 3, 2020
Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

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