With Microsoft confirming a critical new Windows zero-day vulnerability this week, the fact that Google has confirmed two high-risk security vulnerabilities in the Chrome web browser might appear less of an issue. Appearances can be deceptive, and you should treat these two vulnerabilities with, if not equal, then certainly a very similar sense of urgency. Here’s what you need to know and do about CVE-2024-12381 and CVE-2024-12382.
Chrome Browser Security Update—What We Know About CVE-2024-12381 and CVE-2024-12382
The Google Chrome team has confirmed, in a Dec. 10 posting, that all users of the world’s most popular web browser should update to the latest version with immediate effect as two high-severity security vulnerabilities have been uncovered and fixed.
As is always the case with such vulnerability announcements, Google has not released technical details of the issues beyond a basic description of each. This is to ensure the maximum number of users get a chance to update and protect themselves from the threats before attackers get a chance to exploit them.
What we do know is this:
- CVE-2024-1238 is a type confusion vulnerability in the Chrome V8 JavaScript engine.
- CVE-2024-12382 is a use after free vulnerability in Chrome’s Translate function.
Update Google Chrome Now
Google advised that the latest versions, updated with protections against both CVE-2024-12381 and CVE-2024-12382, are as follows:
- Chrome 131.0.6778.139/.140 for Windows
- Chrome 131.0.6778.139/.140 for Mac
- Chrome 131.0.6778.139 for Linux
- Chrome 131.0.6778.135 for Android
These updates are rolling out across the coming days and weeks, according to Google, but as always, I would recommend that you protect yourself immediately by kickstarting the Chrome browser update process.
Here’s how, step-by-step:
To force the security update, head for the Help|About option in your Google Chrome menu, and it will automatically start downloading. When you see the screen below, ensure you hit the relaunch button or the new protections will not be activated.
Now check that you are running the latest and most secure version of Google Chrome and your browser will be protected from the latest security threats.
