CVE-2001-1569 in Openwave WAP Gateway
Summary
by MITRE
Openwave WAP gateway does not verify the fully qualified domain name URL with X.509 certificates from root certificate authorities, which allows remote attackers to spoof SSL certificates via a man-in-the-middle attack.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 06/16/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2001-1569 represents a critical SSL certificate validation flaw within the Openwave WAP gateway implementation. This issue stems from the gateway's failure to properly validate the fully qualified domain name against the X.509 certificates presented during SSL handshakes. The weakness creates a fundamental security gap that allows attackers to execute successful man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged SSL certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable gateway. The Openwave WAP gateway serves as a critical component in wireless communication infrastructure, facilitating secure data transmission between mobile devices and enterprise networks through SSL encryption. When the gateway fails to verify certificate domain names against the presented SSL certificates, it essentially disables the primary security mechanism designed to prevent unauthorized parties from intercepting or modifying sensitive communications.
This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation" in security protocols. The flaw represents a classic case of insufficient certificate verification where the system accepts certificates without properly checking that the certificate's subject matches the domain name being accessed. The technical implementation error lies in the gateway's SSL stack not performing the standard hostname verification process that is mandated by RFC 2818 and other security standards. Attackers can exploit this by obtaining a valid certificate from a trusted certificate authority but using it with a different domain name, or by creating a certificate that matches the expected domain but lacks proper validation mechanisms. This particular implementation bypasses the crucial step of Subject Alternative Name (SAN) field validation and the common name (CN) field verification that should occur during SSL certificate validation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends far beyond simple network security concerns, affecting the integrity and confidentiality of all communications passing through the Openwave WAP gateway. Mobile device users connecting through this gateway become vulnerable to eavesdropping, data tampering, and credential theft attacks, as the gateway cannot distinguish between legitimate and malicious SSL certificates. This creates a significant risk for enterprises relying on wireless communication for sensitive business operations, healthcare data transmission, financial transactions, and other security-critical applications. The vulnerability essentially renders the SSL encryption provided by the gateway ineffective, as attackers can establish secure-looking connections while simultaneously intercepting and modifying data in transit. Organizations using this gateway may experience data breaches, regulatory compliance violations, and loss of customer trust when attackers successfully exploit this weakness to compromise wireless communications.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2001-1569 require immediate attention and comprehensive remediation approaches. Organizations should prioritize upgrading to patched versions of the Openwave WAP gateway software that implement proper SSL certificate validation procedures, including full hostname verification against certificate subject fields. The recommended solution involves implementing strict certificate validation that checks both the subject alternative name and common name fields of certificates against the requested domain name, following the standards established by RFC 2818 and the TLS protocol specifications. Network administrators should also consider implementing additional security layers such as certificate pinning, where specific certificate fingerprints are hardcoded into the gateway configuration to prevent the acceptance of unauthorized certificates. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to verify that certificate validation mechanisms are functioning correctly, and monitoring systems should be deployed to detect potential man-in-the-middle attack attempts. Furthermore, organizations should establish robust certificate management policies and consider implementing certificate transparency measures to enhance visibility into certificate issuance and potential misuse. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper certificate validation in secure communication protocols and highlights the necessity of adhering to established security standards such as those defined in the ATT&CK framework under the credential access and defense evasion techniques.