Mac Users Have Another Emergency Chrome Update To Install

If you are among the millions of people who use Google's Chrome browser on a Mac computer, there is an important software update you need to be aware of. On November 24th, Google issued an emergency update for the Mac version of Google Chrome to patch what Google describes as a "severe security flaw." Interestingly, Google stopped short of revealing complete details about the security flaw to ensure that people have enough time to apply the software patch and secure their systems before details of the vulnerability leak.

What is more interesting about this latest emergency security patch is that it is the eighth such patch for Mac systems that Google has rolled out in 2022. The first emergency update patch issued for Google Chrome in 2022 rolled out in February, following which six other patches were released in March, April, July, August, September, and October. With the newest security patch rolling out this month, January, May, and June are the only months in which Google has not issued an emergency patch for Google Chrome for Mac. In March 2022, Google also issued another update for Chrome due to a vulnerability with Javascript V8. 

Google refers to these patches as emergency updates because sophisticated hackers can potentially use these to perform targeted cyber attacks. In the release note detailing Chrome for Mac's November emergency patch, Google reveals that this newest vulnerability was reported by Clement Lecigne — a member of Google's Threat Analysis Group — on November 22, 2022 — meaning that it took the search giant a little over a day to issue this emergency patch.

Needless to say, if you haven't updated Chrome on your Mac, you will need to do so as soon as possible. Click the three dots in the right corner of Google Chrome and navigate to "Help." Once you hover the cursor over "Help," you click on the option that says "About Google Chrome." The browser should perform an automatic update and install any new update available. Once the installation is complete, you may see a message that reads, "Nearly up to date! Relaunch Chrome to finish updating." You may be required to close all instances of Google Chrome and relaunch the browser for the update to take effect. Once updated, ensure that your browser is on version 107.0.5304.122 for Mac and Linux systems.

In its release notes, Google describes this vulnerability as a "heap buffer overflow" which falls in the category of a memory vulnerability. Hackers may use this vulnerability to gain access to Chrome's memory and manipulate its execution patch. In addition, this vulnerability could also be potentially used to siphon off data or perform an arbitrary code execution, reports Bleeping Computer. We expect Google to share more details surrounding this latest security vulnerability in the next few weeks.