Google Chrome Repository Insecurity

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Google wants you to install a weak cryptographic key (DSA key with only 1024 bits) as a Debian package manager APT key and downloads over plain http without TLS verification. Software download not protected by https (TLS).

Google Chrome Repository Insecurity

Summary

As per 14 March 2021,

• Google wants you to install a weak cryptographic key (DSA key with only 1024 bits) as a Debian package manager APT key.
• Repository download happens over plain http without encryption/authentication (TLS) (https).

Source

Signing Key

As per 14 March 2021, Google wants you to run the following command. (archived)

wget -q -O - https://dl.google.com/linux/linux_signing_key.pub | sudo apt-key add -

This effectively results in installing a weak cryptographic key (DSA key with only 1024 bits) as a Debian package manager APT key.

What this does is using the wget command line downloader to download an APT signing key and then using Debian's apt-key utility to install the signing key to the system's APT keyring /etc/apt/trusted.gpg. Sidenote: both apt-key and /etc/apt/trusted.gpg are deprecated by Debian but that doesn't have a security impact here.

1) Download https://dl.google.com/linux/linux_signing_key.pub

2) View OpenPGP key information.

gpg --keyid-format long --import --import-options show-only --with-fingerprint linux_signing_key.pub

3) Will show.

pub   dsa1024/A040830F7FAC5991 2007-03-08 [SC]
      Key fingerprint = 4CCA 1EAF 950C EE4A B839  76DC A040 830F 7FAC 5991
uid                            Google, Inc. Linux Package Signing Key <linux-packages-keymaster@google.com>
sub   elg2048/4F30B6B4C07CB649 2007-03-08 [E]

gpg: key 7721F63BD38B4796: 2 signatures not checked due to missing keys
pub   rsa4096/7721F63BD38B4796 2016-04-12 [SC]
      Key fingerprint = EB4C 1BFD 4F04 2F6D DDCC  EC91 7721 F63B D38B 4796
uid                            Google Inc. (Linux Packages Signing Authority) <linux-packages-keymaster@google.com>
sub   rsa4096/78BD65473CB3BD13 2019-07-22 [S] [expires: 2022-07-21]

The first key shows dsa1024 which means a DSA key with only 1024 bits.

In January 2011 the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) stated, quote:

Disallowed after 2013

Google seems to agree with this assessment since their signing key file linux_signing_key.pub already contains a newer key rsa4096 (RSA with 4096 bits). There is however no need whatsoever to still include the weak dsa1024 in the signing key file linux_signing_key.pub.

Repository

1) Download https://dl.google.com/linux/direct/google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb (archived google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb)

2) Extract or open with ark the google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb compressed archive file.

ark google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb

3) Extract or open control.tar.gz a file inside the google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb compressed archive file.

4) Open the file postinst (the Debian package maintenance script by the google-chrome-stable_current_amd64.deb Debian package).

5) Line 137 is:

REPOCONFIG="deb [arch=amd64] http://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main"

6) Conclusion.

Using plain http instead of https (TLS).

Other sources showing using http instead of https:

• https://github.com/brave/brave-browser/issues/1084

Bug Reports

• Security: Chrome Linux (Debian) Package Repository using unauthenticated HTTP instead of authenticated HTTPS (TLS)
• Security: Debian Package Repository using unauthenticated HTTP instead of authenticated HTTPS

Related

• Chrome
• Chromium
• Dev/Chromium
• Dev/Default Browser
• Chromium Browser for Kicksecure Discussions (not Whonix)

Footnotes

Kicksecure A secure by default operating system with the latest security research in place.

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