CVE-2012-5799 in CanadaPost
Summary
by MITRE
The Canada Post (aka CanadaPost) module in PrestaShop does not verify that the server hostname matches a domain name in the subject s Common Name (CN) or subjectAltName field of the X.509 certificate, which allows man-in-the-middle attackers to spoof SSL servers via an arbitrary valid certificate, related to use of the PHP fsockopen function.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 03/16/2019
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2012-5799 affects the Canada Post module within PrestaShop e-commerce platforms, representing a critical SSL certificate validation weakness that undermines the security of online transactions. This flaw specifically targets the module's implementation of SSL/TLS certificate verification when establishing secure connections to external services, creating a pathway for sophisticated man-in-the-middle attacks that can compromise sensitive data exchanges between the e-commerce platform and payment processing systems.
The technical root cause stems from improper SSL certificate validation logic within the PrestaShop Canada Post module, which fails to properly validate the server hostname against the certificate's subject alternative name or common name fields. This vulnerability directly relates to CWE-295, which addresses "Improper Certificate Validation" in security protocols, and specifically manifests when the module utilizes PHP's fsockopen function without implementing adequate SSL context options for hostname verification. The absence of proper certificate validation allows attackers to substitute a malicious certificate with a valid one that does not match the expected domain, effectively bypassing the security mechanisms designed to prevent unauthorized access to sensitive transaction data.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception, as it creates opportunities for attackers to manipulate payment transactions, steal customer credentials, and compromise the integrity of the entire e-commerce infrastructure. When customers make purchases through PrestaShop stores utilizing the affected Canada Post module, their payment information becomes vulnerable to interception and manipulation by adversaries who can establish fraudulent connections with the payment processing servers. This vulnerability particularly affects e-commerce platforms handling sensitive financial transactions, where the compromise of SSL validation can lead to significant financial losses, regulatory penalties, and reputational damage that may exceed the direct financial impact of the attack itself.
Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including updating to patched versions of PrestaShop that address the SSL validation flaw, implementing additional network-level security controls such as SSL inspection and certificate pinning, and conducting comprehensive security assessments of all third-party modules to identify similar validation weaknesses. The ATT&CK framework's technique T1573.002, which covers "Tunneling through Secure Shell (SSH) and Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) protocols," is directly relevant to this vulnerability as it demonstrates how attackers can exploit weak SSL validation to establish covert communication channels. Additionally, security practitioners should consider implementing certificate transparency monitoring and regular automated scanning for SSL/TLS misconfigurations to prevent exploitation of similar validation flaws across the broader infrastructure.