CVE-2020-16037
📋 TL;DR
This is a use-after-free vulnerability in Google Chrome's clipboard component that allows remote attackers to potentially exploit heap corruption. Attackers can trigger this by tricking users into visiting a malicious HTML page, potentially leading to arbitrary code execution. All users running vulnerable versions of Google Chrome are affected.
💻 Affected Systems
- Google Chrome
📦 What is this software?
Chrome by Google
Google Chrome is the world's most popular web browser, used by over 3 billion users globally across Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS platforms. As a Chromium-based browser developed by Google, Chrome dominates the browser market with approximately 65% market share, making it a critical compon...
Learn more about Chrome →⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution with the same privileges as the Chrome process, potentially leading to full system compromise, data theft, or ransomware deployment.
Likely Case
Browser crash (denial of service) or limited code execution within Chrome's sandbox, potentially allowing data exfiltration or further exploitation.
If Mitigated
No impact if Chrome is fully patched or if exploit attempts are blocked by security controls like web filtering or endpoint protection.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user interaction (visiting a malicious page) but no authentication. Heap corruption vulnerabilities can be challenging to exploit reliably.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 87.0.4280.88
Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2020/12/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Chrome. 2. Click the three-dot menu → Help → About Google Chrome. 3. Chrome will automatically check for updates and install version 87.0.4280.88 or later. 4. Click 'Relaunch' to restart Chrome with the update.
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable JavaScript
allPrevents malicious HTML pages from executing JavaScript that could trigger the vulnerability.
Use Chrome's Site Isolation
allSite Isolation is enabled by default in Chrome 67+ and provides some protection against certain types of attacks.
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Use alternative browsers that are not affected by this specific vulnerability.
- Implement strict web filtering to block access to untrusted or malicious websites.
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Chrome version: Open Chrome → Click three-dot menu → Help → About Google Chrome. If version is below 87.0.4280.88, you are vulnerable.Check Version:
On Windows: "C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application\chrome.exe" --version
On macOS: /Applications/Google\ Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google\ Chrome --version
On Linux: google-chrome --versionVerify Fix Applied:
After updating, verify Chrome version is 87.0.4280.88 or higher using the same About Google Chrome page.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Chrome crash reports with memory corruption signatures
- Unexpected Chrome process termination events
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests to known malicious domains hosting exploit code
- Unusual outbound connections after visiting web pages
SIEM Query:
source="chrome_logs" AND (event_type="crash" OR event_type="process_termination") AND process_name="chrome.exe"