VulnerabilityPublished 24 Mar 2026Updated 25 Mar 2026

CVE-2026-4678: Google Chrome · Use After Free

Affects Google ChromeSource CVE Database V5

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Not known to be exploited · CVSS 8.8 High : upgrade to 146.0.7680.165 soon.

Data as of 30 Oct 2026, 11:52 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score

8.8High

How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.

EPSS: 0.4% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 34% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch: Available – fixed in 146.0.7680.165

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

Attack Vector: Network
Attack Complexity: Low
Privileges Required: None
User Interaction: Required
Scope: Unchanged
Confidentiality: High
Integrity: High
Availability: High

Bold values are the worst case: easiest to exploit or largest impact.

Attack Vector: Network: The vulnerable component is bound to the network stack and the set of possible attackers extends beyond the other options listed, up to and including the entire Internet. Such a vulnerability is often termed 'remotely exploitable' and can be thought of as an attack being exploitable at the protocol level one or more network hops away (e.g., across one or more routers).
Attack Complexity: Low: Specialized access conditions or extenuating circumstances do not exist. An attacker can expect repeatable success against the vulnerable component.
Privileges Required: None: The attacker is unauthorized prior to attack, and therefore does not require any access to settings or files to carry out an attack.
User Interaction: Required: Successful exploitation of this vulnerability requires a user to take some action before the vulnerability can be exploited.
Scope: Unchanged: An exploited vulnerability can only affect resources managed by the same security authority. In this case, the vulnerable component and the impacted component are either the same, or both are managed by the same security authority.
Confidentiality: High: There is total loss of confidentiality, resulting in all resources within the impacted component being divulged to the attacker. Alternatively, access to only some restricted information is obtained, but the disclosed information presents a direct, serious impact.
Integrity: High: There is a total loss of integrity, or a complete loss of protection. For example, the attacker is able to modify any/all files protected by the impacted component. Alternatively, only some files can be modified, but malicious modification would present a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component.
Availability: High: There is total loss of availability, resulting in the attacker being able to fully deny access to resources in the impacted component; this loss is either sustained (while the attacker continues to deliver the attack) or persistent (the condition persists even after the attack has completed). Alternatively, the attacker has the ability to deny some availability, but the loss of availability presents a direct, serious consequence to the impacted component (e.g., the attacker cannot disrupt existing connections, but can prevent new connections; the attacker can repeatedly exploit a vulnerability that, in each instance of a successful attack, leaks a only small amount of memory, but after repeated exploitation causes a service to become completely unavailable).

Definitions: FIRST CVSS v3.1 specification.

Exploitation evidence

Disclosed: evidence found.
CVE published 24 Mar 2026
Detectable: no evidence on record.
No public nuclei template indexed
Weaponized: no evidence on record.
No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB
Exploited in the wildExploited: no evidence on record.
Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation
Observed by OffSeq MirageSeen by Mirage: no evidence on record.
No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 30 Oct 2026.

Disclosed: The CVE record is public on cve.org. Its publication is t = 0.
Detectable: A public nuclei template can find exposed instances, for defenders and attackers alike.
Weaponized: A Metasploit exploit module or Exploit-DB entry exists (Metasploit scanner modules do not count), or CISA SSVC or the CVSS exploit maturity reports a public proof of concept.
Exploited in the wild: CISA KEV lists it, CISA SSVC rates exploitation active, or a source reports attacks.
Observed by OffSeq Mirage: OffSeq Mirage honeypot sensors recorded attack traffic for this CVE, or found exposed hosts without attack traffic.

Moments are spaced evenly, not to scale; a dashed line marks a gap of six months or more. Deltas count from t = 0. Sources that give only a date (CISA KEV, Exploit-DB, or a time of exactly 00:00Z) read “same day” rather than hours. Metasploit modules carry the flaw’s disclosure date, not their release date, and nuclei templates carry no date, so both appear above but not on the timeline.

What to do

Upgrade Google Chrome to 146.0.7680.165.

Affected software

Product	Affected	Fixed in
GoogleChrome	Affected >=146.0.7680.165 <146.0.7680.165	Fixed in 146.0.7680.165

AI-suggested

To mitigate CVE-2026-4678, organizations and users should immediately update Google Chrome to version 146.0.7680.165 or later, where the vulnerability has been patched. Beyond patching, organizations should implement strict web content filtering and block access to untrusted or suspicious websites to reduce exposure to malicious HTML pages. Employing endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions with behavioral analysis can help detect exploitation attempts targeting browser vulnerabilities. Network-level protections such as intrusion prevention systems (IPS) should be tuned to identify anomalous web traffic patterns indicative of exploitation. Security teams should educate users about the risks of interacting with unknown or suspicious web content to reduce the likelihood of successful exploitation. Additionally, sandboxing technologies and application isolation can limit the impact of any successful code execution within the browser. Regular vulnerability scanning and threat intelligence monitoring will help identify emerging exploits related to this vulnerability. Finally, organizations should maintain an incident response plan tailored to browser-based attacks to respond swiftly if exploitation occurs.

Description

CVE-2026-4678 is a high-severity use-after-free vulnerability in the WebGPU component of Google Chrome versions prior to 146.0.7680.165. This flaw allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code within the browser's sandbox by tricking a user into visiting a crafted HTML page. Exploitation requires user interaction but no prior authentication, and it can compromise confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the affected system. Although no known exploits are currently in the wild, the vulnerability's high CVSS score of 8.8 indicates significant risk. Organizations using Chrome should promptly update to version 146.0.

Impact

The impact of CVE-2026-4678 is substantial for organizations globally due to the ubiquity of Google Chrome as a web browser. Successful exploitation allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code within the browser sandbox, potentially leading to full system compromise if sandbox escapes are chained. This can result in unauthorized access to sensitive data, disruption of services, and installation of persistent malware. Organizations relying on web applications that utilize WebGPU for graphics or computation are particularly at risk. The requirement for user interaction (visiting a malicious page) means phishing or drive-by download attacks could be vectors. Given Chrome's dominant market share across enterprises, governments, and critical infrastructure sectors, the vulnerability poses a broad threat surface. Additionally, attackers could leverage this flaw to target high-value individuals or organizations by delivering tailored malicious web content. The absence of known exploits in the wild currently reduces immediate risk but does not eliminate the threat, as weaponization could occur rapidly once details become widely known.

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Description

AI analysisMachine-generated, updated 31 Mar 2026, 20:30 UTC

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