CVE-2025-12908
📋 TL;DR
This vulnerability allows attackers to spoof domains in Chrome for Android downloads by tricking users with malicious HTML pages. It affects Android users running Google Chrome versions before 140.0.7339.80. Attackers could make downloads appear to come from trusted domains when they actually originate from malicious sources.
💻 Affected Systems
- Google Chrome for Android
📦 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
Users download malicious files believing they come from legitimate sources, leading to malware installation, credential theft, or data compromise.
Likely Case
Users are tricked into downloading unwanted or suspicious files from spoofed domains, potentially leading to adware or unwanted software installation.
If Mitigated
Users notice the actual download source upon closer inspection or have security software that flags suspicious downloads.
🎯 Exploit Status
Exploitation requires user to visit attacker-controlled webpage and initiate download. No authentication needed.
🛠️ Fix & Mitigation
✅ Official Fix
Patch Version: 140.0.7339.80 and later
Vendor Advisory: https://chromereleases.googleblog.com/2025/09/stable-channel-update-for-desktop.html
Restart Required: Yes
Instructions:
1. Open Google Play Store on Android device
2. Search for 'Google Chrome'
3. Tap 'Update' if available
4. Restart Chrome after update completes
🔧 Temporary Workarounds
Disable automatic downloads
androidConfigure Chrome to require user confirmation for all downloads
Use alternative browser
androidTemporarily use a different browser until Chrome is updated
🧯 If You Can't Patch
- Educate users to verify download sources before accepting files
- Implement web filtering to block known malicious domains
🔍 How to Verify
Check if Vulnerable:
Check Chrome version in Settings > About Chrome. If version is below 140.0.7339.80, device is vulnerable.Check Version:
chrome://version/ in Chrome address barVerify Fix Applied:
Confirm Chrome version is 140.0.7339.80 or higher in Settings > About Chrome.📡 Detection & Monitoring
Log Indicators:
- Unusual download patterns from unfamiliar domains
- Multiple download attempts from same IP
Network Indicators:
- HTTP requests to known malicious domains with download parameters
- Unusual user-agent strings
SIEM Query:
source="chrome_downloads" AND (domain_spoofing_attempt=true OR suspicious_download_source=*)