What is CVE-2026-8522?

CVE-2026-8522 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple macOS, classified under Use After Free. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2026-05-14.

How severe is CVE-2026-8522?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.

Use After Free in Apple macOS

CVE-2026-8522

Use after free in Downloads in Google Chrome on Mac prior to 148.0.7778.168 allowed a remote attacker to execute arbitrary code via a crafted HTML page. (Chromium security severity: Critical)

Vulnerability class: Use-After-Free

Published 2026-05-14 · last modified 2026-06-17.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 8.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

EPSS exploit prediction

EPSS: 0.004 (29.7th percentile), scored 2026-09-29.

Very low probability of exploitation in the next 30 days; routine patching cadence is appropriate. 30th percentile — 29.7% of CVEs in the catalogue have a lower EPSS than this one. How to read EPSS.

EPSS over last 30 days · oldest: 0.003 · newest: 0.004 · change: +0.001

Affected products

Apple macOS
Google Chrome — versions 148.0.7778.168

Weakness classification (CWE)

CWE-416 — Use After Free

References

chromereleases.googleblog.com/2026/05/stable-channel-update-for-desktop_12.html (Product, Vendor Advisory)
issues.chromium.org/issues/504185107 (Permissions Required)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2026-8522?: CVE-2026-8522 is a high-severity vulnerability in Apple macOS, classified under Use After Free. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2026-05-14.
How severe is CVE-2026-8522?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.