CVE-2014-5772 in Government Bookstore
Summary
by MITRE
The Government Bookstore (aka hksarg.isd.sop.govbookstore) application 1.01 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 • 08/31/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-5772 affects the Government Bookstore Android application version 1.01, which is part of the hksarg.isd.sop.govbookstore package. This application, designed for government use, exhibits a critical security flaw in its implementation of secure communication protocols. The vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant exposure that undermines the fundamental security assurances provided by encrypted communications.
The technical flaw represents a failure in certificate validation mechanisms that should normally verify the authenticity and integrity of SSL servers. When an application does not properly verify X.509 certificates, it essentially removes the cryptographic verification process that ensures clients are communicating with legitimate servers rather than malicious intermediaries. This weakness allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged certificates that the application accepts without proper scrutiny. The vulnerability specifically impacts the application's SSL/TLS implementation where certificate pinning or validation checks are either absent or improperly configured, leaving the communication channel susceptible to interception and manipulation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for any government-related application handling sensitive information. Attackers can exploit this weakness to impersonate legitimate servers and establish fraudulent communication channels with users. This enables them to capture, modify, or redirect sensitive data transmitted between the application and its servers. The vulnerability affects not only the confidentiality of information but also the integrity and authenticity of communications, potentially allowing attackers to access government-related data, user credentials, or other sensitive materials that the application is designed to protect. Organizations relying on this application for secure information exchange face significant risk of data breaches and unauthorized access to classified or personal information.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-295, which addresses improper certificate validation, and represents a clear violation of secure coding practices recommended by industry standards. The flaw demonstrates a failure to implement proper SSL/TLS security controls that should be fundamental to any mobile application handling sensitive data. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving credential access and defense evasion, as attackers can exploit it to gain unauthorized access to information while potentially remaining undetected in the communication channel. Organizations should implement certificate pinning mechanisms, ensure proper certificate validation procedures, and conduct regular security assessments to prevent such vulnerabilities from being exploited in production environments.
Mitigation strategies should include immediate implementation of proper certificate validation, deployment of certificate pinning to prevent acceptance of unauthorized certificates, and comprehensive security testing of all SSL/TLS implementations. The application should be updated to verify certificate chains against trusted root authorities and implement proper certificate revocation checking. Organizations should also consider network-level monitoring to detect suspicious certificate usage patterns and establish robust incident response procedures for potential exploitation attempts. Regular security audits and code reviews should be conducted to ensure that all cryptographic implementations meet current security standards and best practices.