High

Use-after-free in Blink in Google Chrome

IdentifiersCVE-2026-8518CWE-416· Use After Free

CVE-2026-8518 is a critical use-after-free vulnerability in the Blink rendering engine of Google Chrome affecting versions prior to 148.0.7778.168. The flaw can be triggered when Chrome processes a crafted HTML page, causing Blink to access memory after it has been freed. According to the provided content, successful exploitation allows a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code inside the Chrome sandbox. Chromium classified the issue as Critical.

For your environment

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ANALYST BRIEF

Impact, mitigation & remediation

What it means. What to do now. Patch path, mitigations, and the assume-compromise checklist.

Impact

What an attacker gets, and what they’ve been doing with it.

Successful exploitation allows remote arbitrary code execution within the Chrome renderer sandbox. The provided CVSS v3.1 vector (AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H) indicates high potential impact to confidentiality, integrity, and availability within the affected sandboxed context. The supplied content does not state that this vulnerability by itself provides a sandbox escape or direct host compromise.

Mitigation

If you can’t patch tonight, do this now.

Apply the vendor patch as soon as possible. Until patching is completed, reduce exposure by limiting use of untrusted websites and untrusted HTML content, and ensure Chrome is updated through the normal browser update mechanism and relaunched after installation. The provided content does not include any specific vendor-recommended workaround short of updating.

Remediation

Patch, then assume compromise.

Update Google Chrome to version 148.0.7778.168 or later. The provided content indicates the issue is fixed in Chrome 148.0.7778.168, and Google released the corresponding stable-channel security update.

PUBLIC EXPLOITS

Exploits

No public exploits tracked yet. Mallory keeps watching.

VALID 0 / 0 TOTALView more in app

No public exploit code observed for this vulnerability.

EXPOSURE SURFACE

Affected products & vendors

Products and vendors Mallory has correlated with this vulnerability. Open in Mallory to drill down to specific CPE configurations and version ranges.

VendorProductType

GoogleChromeapplication

Vendor-confirmed product mapping. Mallory continuously reconciles this list against your asset inventory.

ACTIVITY FEED

Recent activity

6 sources tracked across advisories, community write-ups, and news. New activity surfaces here as Mallory finds it.

6 SOURCESView more in app

cyber security newsNews

May 15, 2026

79 Chrome Vulnerabilities Patched, Including 14 Critical One’s - Update Now!

A use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome's Blink component patched in Chrome 148.0.7778.167/168.

cvefeed high severityNews

May 14, 2026

CVE-2026-8518 - Google Chrome Blink Use-After-Free Vulnerability

A critical use-after-free vulnerability in Blink affecting Google Chrome prior to 148.0.7778.168 that allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code inside the browser sandbox via a crafted HTML page.

chrome releases blogNews

May 12, 2026

Chrome Releases: Stable Channel Update for Desktop

A critical use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome Blink.

chrome releases blogNews

May 12, 2026

Chrome Releases: Stable Channel Update for Desktop

A critical use-after-free vulnerability in Chrome Blink.

What this page doesn’t show

The version that knows your environment.

This page is what’s public. Mallory adds the parts that aren’t: which of your assets are affected, which adversaries are exploiting it right now, which detections to deploy, and what to do tonight.

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Exposure mapping

Query your assets running an affected version, and investigate the blast radius.

Threat actor evidence

Every observed campaign linking this CVE to a named adversary.

Associated malware

Malware families riding this exploit, with evidence and IOCs.

Detection signatures

YARA, Sigma, Snort, and vendor rules, auto-deployed to your SIEM.

Vendor-by-vendor mapping

Cross-references every affected SKU, including bundled OEM variants.

Social activity2

Community discussion across Reddit, Mastodon, and other social sources.

EXTERNAL REFERENCES

MITRE CVE

cve.org · CVE-2026-8518

NVD

nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-8518

MITRE CWE · CWE-416

Use After Free

Vendor Advisory

chromereleases.googleblog.com/2026/05/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_12.html

Permissions Required

issues.chromium.org/issues/497830330