ChromeWeb browser · Google
CVE-2023-2940
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 · uneditedInappropriate implementation in Downloads in Google Chrome prior to 114.0.5735.90 allowed an attacker who convinced a user to install a malicious extension to bypass file access restrictions via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Medium)
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 confidenceThis vulnerability in Chrome's Downloads component allowed a malicious extension to bypass file access restrictions. An attacker needed to trick a user into installing a malicious extension, which could then use a crafted HTML page to access files outside the normal security boundaries.
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
< 114.0.5735.90CVSS 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
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- None
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N
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 installed Google Chrome versionOpen chrome://settings/help or run 'google-chrome --version' from command lineAffected if Version is lower than 114.0.5735.90
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Review installed browser extensionsOpen chrome://extensions and examine all enabled extensions for unknown or untrusted sourcesAffected if Any extension is installed from an untrusted or unknown developer
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Verify Downloads security configurationCheck chrome://settings/downloads for any non-default configurations that may relax file access controlsAffected if Non-standard or relaxed download folder restrictions are configured
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Inspect extension permissionsFor each installed extension, click 'Details' and review granted permissions for 'File system access to files and directories' or similar file access permissionsAffected if Any extension has file system access permissions that were not explicitly granted by the user
You are affected if your Chrome version is below 114.0.5735.90 AND you have an untrusted or malicious extension installed with file access capabilities.
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.
dbcve · scoped114.0.5735.90
Upgrade Google Chrome to version 114.0.5735.90 or later. Ensure users do not install untrusted extensions.
Chrome 114.0.5735.90 or later
- Open Google Chrome
- Navigate to Chrome Menu > Help > About Google Chrome
- Chrome will automatically check for and download updates
- If version 114.0.5735.90 or later is available, click 'Update Google Chrome'
- Restart the browser to complete the update
Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.
Fix this in Chrome
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation1.0 h
- Testing1.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $1,200.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2023-2940 — 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-2023-2940 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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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.
- 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