CVE-2020-6415 – This vulnerability is a JavaScript implementati... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2020-6415?

CVE-2020-6415 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). This vulnerability is a JavaScript implementation flaw in Google Chrome that allows remote attackers to potentially exploit heap corruption via crafted HTML pages. It affects users running Chrome versions prior to 80.0.3987.87. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution or browser crashes.

📋 TL;DR

This vulnerability is a JavaScript implementation flaw in Google Chrome that allows remote attackers to potentially exploit heap corruption via crafted HTML pages. It affects users running Chrome versions prior to 80.0.3987.87. Successful exploitation could lead to arbitrary code execution or browser crashes.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Google Chrome
Chromium-based browsers

Versions: All versions prior to 80.0.3987.87

Operating Systems: Windows, Linux, macOS, Chrome OS

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: All standard Chrome installations are vulnerable. Extensions or security settings don't mitigate this vulnerability.

📦 What is this software?

Backports Sle by Opensuse

View all CVEs affecting Backports Sle →

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 if Chrome is running with elevated privileges.

🟠

Likely Case

Browser crash (denial of service) or limited code execution within the Chrome sandbox, potentially allowing data theft or further exploitation.

🟢

If Mitigated

No impact if Chrome is fully patched or if exploit attempts are blocked by security controls.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH - Attackers can exploit via malicious websites or ads without user interaction beyond visiting a page.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Internal users could be targeted via phishing or compromised internal websites.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ⚠️ Yes

Weaponized: LIKELY

Unauthenticated Exploit: ⚠️ Yes

Complexity: MEDIUM

Exploitation requires JavaScript execution but no authentication. The bug report (crbug.com/1029576) contains technical details that could aid exploitation.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 80.0.3987.87 and later

Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2020/02/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Open Chrome and click the three-dot menu. 2. Go to Help > About Google Chrome. 3. Chrome will automatically check for and install updates. 4. Click 'Relaunch' to restart Chrome with the update.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable JavaScript

all

Prevents JavaScript execution which is required for exploitation

chrome://settings/content/javascript

Use Site Isolation

all

Enables site isolation to limit impact of potential exploitation

chrome://flags/#enable-site-per-process

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Restrict browser usage to trusted websites only
Implement network filtering to block malicious JavaScript content

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check Chrome version: If version is less than 80.0.3987.87, system is vulnerable.

Check Version:

chrome://version/ or 'google-chrome --version' on command line

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm Chrome version is 80.0.3987.87 or higher after update.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Chrome crash reports with memory corruption errors
Unexpected Chrome process termination

Network Indicators:

HTTP requests to known malicious domains serving exploit code
Unusual JavaScript execution patterns

SIEM Query:

source="chrome" AND (event_type="crash" OR message="*corruption*" OR message="*heap*")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2020-6415

CVSS v3 Score: 8.8 (HIGH)

CVSS Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CWE: CWE-787

Published: February 11, 2020

Last Updated: November 21, 2024

🔗 References

http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-02/msg00015.html Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-02/msg00025.html Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0514 Third Party Advisory
https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2020/02/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html Vendor Advisory
https://crbug.com/1029576 Exploit,Issue Tracking,Patch,Vendor Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6IOHSO6BUKC6I66J5PZOMAGFVJ66ZS57/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/X3B5RWJQD5LA45MYLLR55KZJOJ5NVZGP/
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202003-08 Third Party Advisory
https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4638 Third Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-02/msg00015.html Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
http://lists.opensuse.org/opensuse-security-announce/2020-02/msg00025.html Mailing List,Third Party Advisory
https://access.redhat.com/errata/RHSA-2020:0514 Third Party Advisory
https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2020/02/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html Vendor Advisory
https://crbug.com/1029576 Exploit,Issue Tracking,Patch,Vendor Advisory
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/6IOHSO6BUKC6I66J5PZOMAGFVJ66ZS57/
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/X3B5RWJQD5LA45MYLLR55KZJOJ5NVZGP/
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202003-08 Third Party Advisory
https://www.debian.org/security/2020/dsa-4638 Third Party Advisory

📤 Share & Export

📄 Export Markdown 📋 Export JSON

🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

If you're affected by CVE-2020-6415, you might also want to check these: