Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
CVE-2021-38023 is a high-severity Chrome memory safety flaw in the Extensions component. A remote attacker could potentially trigger heap corruption through a crafted HTML page, but user interaction is required. The provided sources do not show confirmed active exploitation.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority for browser patch compliance, especially on user endpoints. This is not evidence of an emergency zero-day from the supplied sources, but outdated browsers create broad business risk because exploitation only requires web content plus user interaction.
Technical view
The issue is a CWE-416 use-after-free in Google Chrome Extensions before 92.0.4515.107. CVSS 3.1 is 8.8 with network attack vector, low complexity, no privileges required, user interaction required, and high confidentiality, integrity, and availability impact.
Likely exposure
Organizations are likely exposed where managed or unmanaged endpoints still run Google Chrome versions before 92.0.4515.107. Exposure is higher for users who browse untrusted sites or process links in email, chat, or web-based workflows.
Exploitation context
Sources describe potential exploitation via a crafted HTML page. The CVE is not listed as KEV in the supplied bundle, and no cited source confirms active exploitation. The Chromium issue reference is present but does not provide enough detail here to assess exploit maturity.
Researcher notes
Focus validation on Chrome version state, Extensions component exposure, and endpoint populations with delayed browser updates. The public bundle gives severity, attack vector, CWE, and affected version boundary, but does not provide root-cause detail, proof-of-concept status, or vendor-specific hardening steps.
Mitigation direction
- Update Chrome to 92.0.4515.107 or later where applicable.
- Check Google or Chromium guidance for any additional vendor instructions.
- Prioritize managed browser update enforcement on user workstations.
- Reduce exposure to untrusted links through existing web and email controls.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Chrome versions across managed endpoints.
- Flag any Chrome install older than 92.0.4515.107.
- Confirm browser auto-update policies are enabled and functioning.
- Review exception lists for unmanaged or pinned browser versions.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.
ATT&CK lookup starting points
Use these exact CWE pages and searches to review the Glexia ATT&CK library from this CVE's weakness and description context.
CWE-416: Exact CWE lookup
Use the exact CWE identifier as the starting point before reviewing related ATT&CK behavior. Open the exact CWE lookup page first, then review the ATT&CK searches from that MITRE weakness context. This is a Glexia lookup hint, not an official ATT&CK mapping.
Open ATT&CK lookupCVE-2021-38023 mapping review
Open the CVE-to-ATT&CK bridge for reviewed, inferred, or future official mappings tied to this CVE.
Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- High
- CVSS
- 8.8 (3.1)
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS vector scores
1 official scoreWe collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H2.85.9Primary CVE scoreVulnerability scoring details
Base CVSS 3.1 score
8.8HighVector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://issues.chromium.org/issues/40056265CVE reference
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.
Use After Free
Use After Free represents a recurring weakness pattern that can create exploitable paths when design, validation, or implementation controls are missing.