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CVE-2026-53766: CVE-2026-53766: Workspace Boundary Bypass in chrome-devtools-mcp via Symbolic Link Resolution Failure

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CVE-2026-53766: Workspace Boundary Bypass in chrome-devtools-mcp via Symbolic Link Resolution Failure

Vulnerability ID: CVE-2026-53766
CVSS Score: 6.1
Published: 2026-08-17

A workspace boundary bypass vulnerability exists in the Chrome DevTools for Agents (chrome-devtools-mcp) Model Context Protocol (MCP) server from version 0.24.0 up to 1.1.0. The vulnerability allows an agent or malicious workspace containing symbolic links to read or modify arbitrary files outside the configured project workspace root directory. This occurs because the path validation function resolves paths lexically rather than physically.

TL;DR

The chrome-devtools-mcp server failed to resolve symbolic links physically during path validation, allowing directory traversal and unauthorized read/write access outside the workspace via local symlinks.

⚠️ Exploit Status: POC

Technical Details

  • CWE ID: CWE-22 / CWE-59
  • Attack Vector: Local
  • CVSS Score: 6.1
  • EPSS Score: 0.00107
  • Impact: High (Integrity)
  • Exploit Status: Proof-of-Concept
  • KEV Status: Not Listed

Affected Systems

  • chrome-devtools-mcp
  • chrome-devtools-mcp: >=0.24.0 <1.1.0 (Fixed in: 1.1.0)

Code Analysis

Commit: 176eb69

mcp: fix path traversal via symlinks

Mitigation Strategies

  • Upgrade chrome-devtools-mcp to version 1.1.0 or higher.
  • Apply sandboxing (Docker, gVisor, or AppArmor) to limit the file access footprint of the Node process.
  • Configure directory permissions to prevent the creation of unauthorized symlinks inside workspace folders.

Remediation Steps:

  1. 1. Identify current version of chrome-devtools-mcp in use using 'npm list chrome-devtools-mcp'.
  2. 2. Update package.json to reference version '^1.1.0' or higher.
  3. 3. Run 'npm install' or 'yarn install' to pull the updated version.
  4. 4. Restart any active instances of the MCP server.

References

Read the full report for CVE-2026-53766 on our website for more details including interactive diagrams and full exploit analysis.

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