Indian Google Chrome users are increasingly at risk of serious cyber threats that allow hackers to control their systems remotely. The Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) certifies this as “High Severity” warning and conveys that users must immediately update their browsers to provide protection from data leaks. Vulnerabilities are found with Chrome versions prior to 130.0.6723.69 on Windows, Mac, and Linux. If the vulnerabilities are exploited, malicious code may be executed, and sensitive information may be accessed.
CERT-In’s Alerts and High-Risk Factors
On October 28, 2024, the government-run body CERT-In sent out an alert regarding the emergence of flaws that, if exploited by attackers, could compromise user security on Chrome. Flaws mostly emerge from the Extensions of the browser and the V8 JavaScript engine. In the case of a user visiting a corrupted page without the user’s knowledge, a hacker might inject and execute arbitrary code, therefore, taking over complete control of the system. Others are the risk of various types of attacks that give rise to severe impacts – causing unauthorised access to personal information and damaging the system.
What Is the Core Issue?
A pair of highly serious flaws are attributable to “Inappropriate Implementation” within the Extensions module and “Type Confusion” that exists within the V8 JavaScript engine responsible for Chrome speed performance. “Inappropriate Implementation” could lead to mishandling of data, while Type Confusion in the V8 can cause the browser to process a given code incorrectly. This leaves Chrome with a significant vulnerability to remote code execution; that is, one could control another machine through hacking. The flaws exist in Chrome versions prior to 130.0.6723.69/.70 for Windows and Mac, and versions preceding 130.0.6723.69 on Linux.
How Can Users Protect Themselves?
The most effective way for users to protect themselves is to update the Google Chrome version. The updates released by Google usually rectify bugs and threats to security. This recent patch contains fixes for the vulnerabilities indicated by CERT-In. To check the Chrome version, users should click a three-dot menu that appears on the upper right corner, go to “Help”, and choose “About Google Chrome”. If an update is available, Chrome will automatically download and install it after the browser is restarted.
