Password-stealing Chrome extension smuggled on to Web Store

cross-posted from [email protected]

Original source: https://arxiv.org/pdf/2308.16321.pdf

• Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison found that Chrome browser extensions can still steal passwords, despite compliance with Chrome's latest security standard, Manifest V3.
• A proof of concept extension successfully passed the Chrome Web Store review process, demonstrating the vulnerability.
• The core issue lies in the extensions' full access to the Document Object Model (DOM) of web pages, allowing them to interact with text input fields like passwords.
• Analysis of existing extensions showed that 12.5% had the permissions to exploit this vulnerability, identifying 190 extensions that directly access password fields.
• Researchers propose two fixes: a JavaScript library for websites to block unwanted access to password fields, and a browser-level alert system for password field interactions.