CVE-2014-5637 in Eu Sei
Summary
by MITRE
The Eu Sei (aka com.guilardi.eusei) application eusei_android_5.5 for Android does not verify X.509 certificates from SSL servers, which allows man-in-the-middle attackers to spoof servers and obtain sensitive information via a crafted certificate.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 08/27/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-5637 affects the Eu Sei Android application version 5.5, specifically targeting the application's secure communication protocols. This flaw represents a critical security weakness in the application's implementation of SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanisms, creating a significant attack surface that adversaries can exploit to compromise user data integrity and confidentiality. The vulnerability resides in the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL connections, which fundamentally undermines the security assurances that should be provided by secure communication channels.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of certificate verification within the application's SSL implementation. When the Eu Sei application establishes secure connections to remote servers, it does not perform the necessary validation steps that should confirm the authenticity and trustworthiness of the server's SSL certificate. This omission allows attackers to present fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application, enabling them to establish connections that should otherwise be rejected due to certificate mismatches or trust violations. The vulnerability directly violates established security protocols and represents a failure in the application's cryptographic implementation that aligns with CWE-295, which specifically addresses improper certificate validation in secure communications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, creating multiple attack vectors for man-in-the-middle adversaries. Attackers can exploit this weakness to intercept, modify, or steal sensitive information transmitted between the application and its servers, including user credentials, personal data, financial information, and other confidential communications. The vulnerability essentially transforms the application's secure communication layer into a transparent channel that can be easily compromised, allowing attackers to impersonate legitimate servers and gain unauthorized access to user data. This weakness particularly affects applications handling sensitive user information, making it a prime target for cybercriminals seeking to exploit user trust in mobile applications.
The security implications extend beyond simple data theft, as this vulnerability enables sophisticated attack patterns that align with tactics described in the ATT&CK framework under the T1041 technique for data compression and T1566 for credential access through social engineering. The lack of certificate validation creates an environment where attackers can deploy sophisticated phishing campaigns, redirect users to malicious servers, and maintain persistent access to compromised accounts. Organizations should note that this vulnerability represents a fundamental breakdown in the application's security architecture, potentially exposing users to identity theft, financial fraud, and other serious consequences. The remediation requires implementing proper certificate validation mechanisms that verify certificate chains, check certificate expiration dates, and validate certificate signatures against trusted certificate authorities.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing comprehensive SSL certificate validation within the application's communication layer. Developers must ensure that all SSL connections perform proper certificate chain validation, including checking certificate signatures against trusted root certificates, verifying certificate expiration dates, and ensuring certificate subject names match the target server names. The application should implement certificate pinning where appropriate to prevent downgrade attacks and certificate substitution. Security testing should include comprehensive validation of SSL/TLS implementations using tools that can detect certificate validation failures and ensure that the application properly rejects untrusted certificates. Organizations should also consider implementing network monitoring to detect suspicious certificate behavior and establish incident response procedures for handling potential exploitation of this vulnerability.