Google Chrome Update Addresses Remote Execution Exploit

There is a constant push and pull to maintaining security on any piece of software. Security experts around the world work diligently to discover exploits and vulnerabilities. Web browsers, such as Google Chrome, act as the entry point for many users and the web.

It stands to reason that vulnerabilities on a web browser would be of the utmost importance to resolve in a quick and efficient manner. Vulnerabilities are frequently published as CVEs or common vulnerabilities and exposures. A particularly nasty vulnerability is the subject of today’s article.

Meet the Exploit: CVE-2022-3075

CVE-2022-3075 became known in September of this year. With a 9.6 critical rating for the attack vector, it is paramount for those susceptible to the exploit to patch or update their browsers immediately.

CVE-2022-3075 is an exploit that allows for sandbox escape through a web page. This means an attacker could pivot from a public-facing webspace to the actual back-end servers. While this doesn’t pose a grave risk to the user, it is a danger to sites.

The exploit is exclusive to Chromium-based web browsers, meaning Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, and any others which use Chrome as its basis. Chrome has been hit with several identified CVEs this year, with thirty-one vulnerabilities in 2022 alone.

How to Avoid the Exploit

For web browsers, it is absolutely crucial to keep your software up-to-date. Chrome and Firefox alike are easy to update thankfully. Users can either use the update option in the settings menu or simply close the browser and relaunch it will work.

Keeping your browser up-to-date is like going into any public space essentially. Users taking proper precautions and sanitation measures leads to happier computer usage.

Remote execution exploits like the subject of this Chrome update are risky to manage, but thankfully most developers are quick to rectify the issue.

Being Aware of Exploits

Keeping your software up-to-date is all well and good, but how do you prevent exploits from affecting you? There are no absolutely secure methods, aside from practicing good internet hygiene.

In cybersecurity, most exploits start with the end user. Bad actors can and do pivot their way into networks through intrusive means, using hacks and exploits to gain access. However, an organization is only as secure as its least technologically savvy users.

Exploits targeting remote code execution might not target the end user, but they are still a massive risk. A compromised user computer can be a very potent attack vector, and leaving vulnerabilities like CVE-2022-3075 free to operate poses grave risks.

Google Chrome is a popular browser, so even if you’re not the most up-to-date on the murmurings in the security world, it still only benefits you to keep your browser and operating system updated.

Other Measures You Can Take for Security

Exploits affect users, companies, and everything in between. You can mitigate this by adopting some cybersecurity practices from the enterprise world into your own home. These include the following:

• Audits,
• Continual Hygiene,
• Network analytics,
• Disaster Recovery Planning.

Audits

A cybersecurity audit evaluates all company assets to keep an inventory and evaluate their security. Replacement or updates occur for out-of-date components. This can apply to your small business or home network.

Cursory research for the devices in your home should yield security evaluations by professionals. You can use this to determine whether or not your home or small business is in need of updating hardware or just the software end of things.

Continual Hygiene

Hygiene in computing is similar to personal hygiene. It means keeping your system clean and being conscientious of where files come from. As previously mentioned, the weakest member of an organization is the most hazardous for safe computing.

If you have individuals in your home or business who are downloading files without a care, it poses a massive risk. Utilities like VirusTotal can help determine if a file is a potential payload for malware.

Periodic malware scans should be conducted because they can help identify underlying problems before they become serious issues. Malware infections lead to compromised systems, so safe practices and routines are a must.

Network Analytics

How aware are you of the traffic going in and out of your network? If you aren’t performing periodic checks of your network traffic, you’re allowing a blindspot for bad actors.

Network analytics are simple to perform, as most commercially available routers have some degree of logging. There are additional utilities that can also be leveraged, like Wireshark, which allows for the visualization of full traffic flow.

Disaster Recovery Planning

The continuity of networks is something that is absolutely crucial for enterprise networks. It could also benefit you as well. If you’re the sort who makes regular and continual backups, you’re well on your way to implementing your own plan.

Disaster recovery plans are a contingency in the event of a known exploit or bad actor breaching your layers of security. Clean and verified backups can be conducted through system utilities provided in Windows.

In addition, it allows for the security of your data. Having good backups also has the benefit of providing a baseline in the event of a catastrophic exploit, like ransomware for example.

Why Is Chrome So Vulnerable?

Google Chrome has a large market share, accounting for 63% of reported browsers. With such a large base of users across multiple platforms, because Chrome addresses more than just Windows, it becomes a larger target.

Chrome isn’t vulnerable necessarily, but it has a robust and devoted security team. So, while there are a larger number of vulnerabilities reported for Chrome on a yearly basis, it still is a secure product.

Any potential for leveraging Chrome or Chromium-based browsers to be used for malicious exploits is going to be a focus just because of the sheer number of users deploying it. Chrome isn’t vulnerable, it is just in constant focus. Security updates are frequent, just as they are with Mozilla Firefox.

Beyond simple good practices, the most effective means of keeping your copy of Chrome safe for use is just a simple matter of updating. If you are at the point where an exploit is noticeable, then any safety measures are effectively useless.

General sanitation starts with good practices, and updates to protect such a crucial piece of software are paramount. If you consider that you might be dealing with secure financial data, sensitive information, and so much more, it only makes sense to keep your portal to the web safe.