CVE-2021-30569
📋 TL;DR
This is a use-after-free vulnerability in SQLite within Google Chrome that allows remote attackers to potentially exploit heap corruption. Attackers can trigger this vulnerability by tricking users into visiting a specially crafted HTML page. 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 →Fedora by Fedoraproject
Fedora by Fedoraproject
Fedora by Fedoraproject
⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact
Worst Case
Remote code execution leading to full system compromise, data theft, or installation of persistent malware.
Likely Case
Browser crash (denial of service) or limited memory corruption that could be leveraged for further exploitation.
If Mitigated
No impact if Chrome is fully patched or if exploit attempts are blocked by security controls.
🎯 Exploit Status
Use-after-free vulnerabilities in browser engines are commonly exploited in the wild, though no specific weaponization of this CVE has been confirmed.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 92.0.4515.107 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2021/07/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_20.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Chrome. 2. Click the three-dot menu → 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
allPrevents execution of malicious JavaScript that could trigger the vulnerability
chrome://settings/content/javascript → Block
Use Site Isolation
allEnables site isolation to limit impact of renderer process compromises
chrome://flags/#enable-site-per-process → Enable
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Restrict access to untrusted websites using web filtering or proxy controls
- Implement application allowlisting to prevent unauthorized Chrome execution
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Chrome version: Open Chrome → Click three-dot menu → Help → About Google Chrome. If version is below 92.0.4515.107, 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 92.0.4515.107 or higher using the same method.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Chrome crash reports with sqlite-related stack traces
- Unexpected Chrome process termination events
Network Indicators:
- Requests to known malicious domains hosting exploit code
- Unusual outbound connections after visiting suspicious sites
SIEM Query:
source="chrome_logs" AND (event="crash" OR event="process_termination") AND process="chrome" AND message="*sqlite*"🔗 References
- https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2021/07/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_20.html
- https://crbug.com/1218707
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/5LVY4WIWTVVYKQMROJJS365TZBKEARCF/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/IPJPUSAWIJMQFBQQQYXAICLI4EKFQOH6/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/QW4R2K5HVJ4R6XDZYOJCCFPIN2XHNS3L/
- https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2021/07/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_20.html
- https://crbug.com/1218707
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/5LVY4WIWTVVYKQMROJJS365TZBKEARCF/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/IPJPUSAWIJMQFBQQQYXAICLI4EKFQOH6/
- https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce%40lists.fedoraproject.org/message/QW4R2K5HVJ4R6XDZYOJCCFPIN2XHNS3L/
