CVE-2023-2725 – This is a use-after-free vulnerability in Chrom... (How to Fix)

Q: What is the severity of CVE-2023-2725?

CVE-2023-2725 has a CVSS score of 8.8 (HIGH). This is a use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome's Guest View component that allows heap corruption. Attackers can exploit it by convincing users to install a malicious extension and visit a crafted HTML page. All Chrome users prior to version 113.0.5672.126 are affected.

📋 TL;DR

This is a use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome's Guest View component that allows heap corruption. Attackers can exploit it by convincing users to install a malicious extension and visit a crafted HTML page. All Chrome users prior to version 113.0.5672.126 are affected.

💻 Affected Systems

Products:

Google Chrome
Chromium-based browsers

Versions: All versions prior to 113.0.5672.126

Operating Systems: Windows, Linux, macOS, ChromeOS

Default Config Vulnerable: ⚠️ Yes

Notes: Requires both malicious extension installation and visiting crafted HTML page.

📦 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...

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⚠️ Risk & Real-World Impact

🔴

Worst Case

Full system compromise via arbitrary code execution, potentially leading to data theft, ransomware deployment, or complete system control.

🟠

Likely Case

Browser compromise leading to session hijacking, credential theft, and installation of additional malware through the malicious extension.

🟢

If Mitigated

Limited impact with proper extension vetting and user education preventing malicious extension installation.

🌐 Internet-Facing: HIGH - Exploitation requires user interaction but can be triggered via web content.

🏢 Internal Only: MEDIUM - Requires user to install malicious extension, which is less likely in controlled environments.

🎯 Exploit Status

Public PoC: ✅ No

Weaponized: UNKNOWN

Unauthenticated Exploit: ✅ No

Complexity: MEDIUM

Requires social engineering to install malicious extension plus crafted HTML page.

🛠️ Fix & Mitigation

✅ Official Fix

Patch Version: 113.0.5672.126 and later

Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2023/05/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_16.html

Restart Required: Yes

Instructions:

1. Open Chrome menu > Help > About Google Chrome. 2. Chrome will automatically check for updates and install version 113.0.5672.126 or later. 3. Click 'Relaunch' to restart Chrome.

🔧 Temporary Workarounds

Disable Guest View

all

Disable Chrome's Guest View feature via enterprise policy

On Windows: Set 'GuestModeEnabled' to 0 in Chrome policy
On Linux/macOS: Add '--disable-guest-view' to Chrome launch flags

Restrict Extension Installation

all

Only allow extensions from Chrome Web Store via enterprise policy

Set 'ExtensionInstallSources' policy to restrict installation sources

🧯 If You Can't Patch

Implement strict extension whitelisting policies
Deploy web filtering to block suspicious HTML pages

🔍 How to Verify

Check if Vulnerable:

Check Chrome version: if below 113.0.5672.126, system is vulnerable.

Check Version:

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

Verify Fix Applied:

Confirm Chrome version is 113.0.5672.126 or higher after update.

📡 Detection & Monitoring

Log Indicators:

Chrome crash logs with Guest View components
Unexpected extension installation events

Network Indicators:

Requests to known malicious extension IDs
Unusual outbound connections after visiting HTML pages

SIEM Query:

source="chrome_logs" AND (event="extension_install" AND extension_id NOT IN whitelist) OR (event="crash" AND component="guest_view")

📊 Metadata

CVE ID: CVE-2023-2725

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-416

Published: May 16, 2023

Last Updated: May 5, 2025

🔗 References

https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2023/05/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_16.html Release Notes
https://crbug.com/1442516 Permissions Required
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/73XUIHJ6UT75VFPDPLJOXJON7MVIKVZI/ Mailing List
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/FXFL4TDAH72PRCPD5UPZMJMKIMVOPLTI/ Mailing List
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202309-17 Third Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202311-11
https://www.debian.org/security/2023/dsa-5404 Third Party Advisory
https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2023/05/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_16.html Release Notes
https://crbug.com/1442516 Permissions Required
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/73XUIHJ6UT75VFPDPLJOXJON7MVIKVZI/ Mailing List
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/archives/list/package-announce@lists.fedoraproject.org/message/FXFL4TDAH72PRCPD5UPZMJMKIMVOPLTI/ Mailing List
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202309-17 Third Party Advisory
https://security.gentoo.org/glsa/202311-11
https://www.debian.org/security/2023/dsa-5404 Third Party Advisory

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🔗 Related Vulnerabilities

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