Overview
CVE-2025-14174 identifies a critical out-of-bounds (OOB) memory access vulnerability within the ANGLE component of Google Chrome on macOS platforms. Assigned a CVSS score of 8.8 (High), this flaw allows a remote attacker to achieve OOB memory access by enticing a user to visit a specially crafted HTML page. Google has acknowledged the severity, classifying it as a High-severity issue within Chromium. This vulnerability represents a significant risk, enabling potential information disclosure, denial of service, or even arbitrary code execution within the browser’s context. Security professionals must prioritize immediate patching to mitigate the exploitation window.
Technical Details
The core of CVE-2025-14174 lies in an improper memory handling within ANGLE (Almost Native Graphics Layer Engine). ANGLE serves as a crucial abstraction layer, translating OpenGL ES API calls into the underlying native graphics APIs, such as Metal on macOS. This translation process, particularly when handling specific graphical operations or shaders triggered by a malformed HTML page, can lead to memory access violations.
An attacker leverages this by creating a malicious HTML page. When a vulnerable version of Chrome on a Mac system renders this page, the crafted content manipulates ANGLE’s memory operations. This forces the browser to read from or write to memory locations outside the boundaries of an allocated buffer.
The implications of an OOB memory access are severe. An OOB read can lead to information disclosure, allowing an attacker to exfiltrate sensitive data residing in adjacent memory regions, potentially including user data, internal browser state, or pointers that could aid in further exploitation. More critically, an OOB write can corrupt critical data structures, alter program flow, or even inject malicious code. Successful exploitation of an OOB write can often lead to arbitrary code execution (ACE) within the browser’s sandbox. While ACE within the sandbox is serious, an attacker might chain this with another vulnerability to achieve full sandbox escape and compromise the underlying operating system. The remote nature, requiring only a crafted HTML page, underscores the broad attack surface and ease of delivery. Exploit development for such vulnerabilities typically involves sophisticated techniques like heap spraying, heap feng shui, and understanding memory layout to reliably control the OOB access for a desired outcome.
Affected Systems
This high-severity vulnerability specifically impacts Google Chrome browsers running on macOS. All versions of Google Chrome on Mac prior to 143.0.7499.110 are susceptible to CVE-2025-14174. Users and organizations operating Chrome on other platforms (Windows, Linux, Android, iOS) are not directly affected by this particular vulnerability, as the flaw resides within the ANGLE implementation specific to the macOS graphics stack. Identifying and updating all vulnerable Chrome instances on Mac endpoints is paramount.
Remediation
Immediate action is crucial to protect against potential exploitation of CVE-2025-14174. The primary and most effective mitigation involves updating Google Chrome to a patched version.
- Update Google Chrome Immediately: Ensure all installations of Google Chrome on macOS are updated to version 143.0.7499.110 or later. Chrome typically updates automatically, but administrators and users must verify the update status. To check your Chrome version, open Chrome, navigate to
chrome://settings/help, and allow the browser to check for updates. Restart Chrome after the update completes to apply the patch. - Enterprise Patch Management: Organizations must leverage centralized patch management systems to push the required Chrome update across all macOS endpoints. Establish and enforce policies that mandate timely browser updates.
- User Awareness and Training: Educate users about the risks of visiting untrusted websites or clicking suspicious links. While patching addresses the vulnerability, vigilance remains a critical layer of defense against drive-by downloads and phishing attempts that could leverage such flaws.
- Network-Level Monitoring: Implement network intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) to monitor for suspicious web traffic patterns that might indicate attempts to deliver malicious HTML pages targeting browser vulnerabilities.
- Endpoint Security: Ensure endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions are up-to-date and configured to detect unusual process behavior or memory access patterns that could signify attempted exploitation, even if a patch is missed.
- Browser Isolation: For high-risk environments or users, consider deploying browser isolation technologies that execute web content in a remote, disposable environment, effectively sandboxing potential threats away from the endpoint.
For comprehensive details regarding this vulnerability, refer to the full report: CVE-2025-14174 Details. Proactive patching and a layered security approach are indispensable for maintaining a secure browsing environment.
