ChromeWeb browser · Google
CVE-2011-2821
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedDouble free vulnerability in libxml2, as used in Google Chrome before 13.0.782.215, allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service or possibly have unspecified other impact via a crafted XPath expression.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceA double free vulnerability exists in libxml2's XPath expression parsing. When a specially crafted XPath expression is processed, memory is freed twice, leading to heap corruption that can cause denial of service or potentially allow arbitrary code execution.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
ChromeWeb browser
< 13.0.782.215
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 5.0= 6.0= 7.0
Enterprise Linux DesktopOperating system
= 6.0
Enterprise Linux EusOperating system
= 6.3
Enterprise Linux ServerOperating system
= 6.0
Enterprise Linux WorkstationOperating system
= 6.0< 6.0< 10.7.4CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Partial
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Check libxml2 library version on Linux systemsRun 'rpm -q libxml2' on RHEL-based systems or 'dpkg -l libxml2' on Debian-based systems to get the installed version numberAffected if The version is lower than the patched version (typically 2.7.x or later, depending on distribution)
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Verify Google Chrome browser versionOpen Chrome, navigate to chrome://version or run 'google-chrome --version' from command lineAffected if Version is earlier than 13.0.782.215
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Check Apple iOS versionGo to Settings > General > About on the iOS deviceAffected if iOS version is earlier than 6.0
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Check Apple Mac OS X versionClick Apple menu > About This MacAffected if Mac OS X version is earlier than 10.7.4
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Confirm XPath processing is in useReview application logs or code that uses libxml2 to determine if XPath expressions are parsed and evaluatedAffected if Applications process external or untrusted XPath expressions using libxml2's XPath functionality
You are affected if your libxml2 version, Chrome version, iOS version, or Mac OS X version falls below the fixed versions listed, AND your system processes XPath expressions through the vulnerable library component.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data6.010.7.413.0.782.215
Update libxml2 to a patched version or update Google Chrome to 13.0.782.215 or later to receive the library fix.
Fix this in Chrome
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation2.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,480.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2011-2821 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2011-2821 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
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