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ChromeWeb browser · Google

CVE-2021-21226

CRITICAL · 9.6 CVSS v3.1 Published 2021-04-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 90.0.4430.85 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges

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 · unedited
Use after free in navigation in Google Chrome prior to 90.0.4430.85 allowed a remote attacker who had compromised the renderer process to potentially perform a sandbox escape via a crafted HTML page.

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 · high confidence

A use-after-free vulnerability exists in the navigation component of Google Chrome versions prior to 90.0.4430.85. An attacker who has already compromised the renderer process can exploit this memory corruption issue in navigation to potentially escape the sandbox isolation and execute code outside the sandboxed environment.

MitigationUpdate Google Chrome to version 90.0.4430.85 or later to address the vulnerability. In enterprise environments, deploy the update via patch management infrastructure and verify completion across all affected endpoints.

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
Affected:< 90.0.4430.85
Debian LinuxOperating system
Affected:= 10.0
FedoraOperating system
Affected:= 32= 33= 34

CVSS 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
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

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

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Check if Google Chrome is installed
    On Windows, check for Chrome in Program Files or via registry. On Linux, run 'which google-chrome' or check /usr/bin/google-chrome. On macOS, check /Applications/Google Chrome.app
    Affected if Chrome is not installed on the system - the CVE does not apply
  2. Determine the installed Google Chrome version
    Open Chrome and navigate to chrome://settings/help, or run 'google-chrome --version' in terminal. On Windows, check the file properties of chrome.exe. On Linux, also check via package manager: 'dpkg -l | grep google-chrome' (Debian) or 'rpm -qa | grep google-chrome' (Fedora)
    Affected if Version displayed is less than 90.0.4430.85 - the system is affected
  3. Check Chromium package version on Debian
    Run 'apt list --installed 2>/dev/null | grep -i chromium' or 'dpkg -l | grep -i chromium' on Debian 10 systems
    Affected if Chromium version is below what maps to Chrome 90.0.4430.85 in Debian packaging
  4. Check Chromium package version on Fedora
    Run 'rpm -qa | grep -i chromium' on Fedora 32, 33, or 34 systems
    Affected if Chromium version is below what maps to Chrome 90.0.4430.85 in Fedora packaging
  5. Verify the navigation component is in use
    This vulnerability exists in the navigation component and requires a compromised renderer process first. Check active browser sessions and any unusual renderer processes
    Affected if Browser is actively used and version is in the affected range - the vulnerability could potentially be exploited

A system is affected if Google Chrome or Chromium is installed with a version less than 90.0.4430.85, particularly on Windows, macOS, Debian 10, or Fedora 32/33/34.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 90.0.4430.85 or later
Fixed in 90.0.4430.85
Interim mitigation

Update Google Chrome to version 90.0.4430.85 or later to address the vulnerability. In enterprise environments, deploy the update via patch management infrastructure and verify completion across all affected endpoints.

Recommended fix High confidence

Chrome 90.0.4430.85 or later

  1. Update the system package cache: sudo apt-get update (Debian) or sudo dnf check-update (Fedora)
  2. Upgrade Google Chrome to version 90.0.4430.85 or later: sudo apt-get upgrade google-chrome-stable (Debian) or sudo dnf upgrade google-chrome-stable (Fedora)
  3. Restart Google Chrome to ensure the updated version is loaded
  4. Verify the installed version by navigating to chrome://settings/help and confirm the version is 90.0.4430.85 or higher

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Chrome Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

Scan for this in your stack

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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2021-21226 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.

What belongs here
  • Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
  • Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
  • No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
  • No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data