CVE-2014-5798 in Smart Calculator
Summary
by MITRE
The smart.calculator (aka nh.smart.calculator) application 2 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 • 09/01/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-5798 affects the smart.calculator application for Android devices, specifically version 2 of the nh.smart.calculator package. This represents a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols, where the software fails to properly validate SSL/TLS certificates presented by remote servers. The absence of certificate verification creates a significant attack surface that can be exploited by malicious actors to establish fraudulent connections with users' devices.
This vulnerability stems from the application's failure to implement proper certificate chain validation and trust verification mechanisms. The flaw directly relates to CWE-295, which addresses improper certificate validation in secure communications. When an Android application does not verify X.509 certificates, it essentially trusts any certificate presented by a server regardless of its legitimacy or authority. This weakness allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted. Attackers can exploit this weakness to intercept, modify, or steal sensitive data transmitted between the vulnerable application and its remote servers. This includes but is not limited to user credentials, personal information, financial data, and other confidential communications that the application may handle. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it affects mobile applications that likely handle user data, making it a prime target for financial fraud and data theft operations. According to ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to T1041 which covers Exfiltration Over C2 Channel, and T1566 which covers Phishing with Social Engineering.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability requires an attacker to position themselves between the user's device and the legitimate server, typically through network interception techniques. The attacker can then present a malicious certificate that the application will accept without proper verification. This allows the attacker to decrypt and manipulate communications, potentially redirecting users to fraudulent websites or extracting sensitive information from legitimate services that the application relies upon. The attack is particularly effective in public Wi-Fi networks or compromised network environments where such interception is feasible.
Organizations and users should immediately address this vulnerability through multiple mitigation strategies. The primary remediation involves updating the application to a version that properly implements certificate verification and validation. This includes implementing proper certificate pinning mechanisms and ensuring that the application validates certificate chains against trusted certificate authorities. Security measures should also include network monitoring to detect unusual traffic patterns that might indicate certificate interception attempts. Additionally, users should be educated about the risks of connecting to untrusted networks and the importance of verifying application updates from official sources. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing robust certificate validation as outlined in industry standards and best practices for mobile application security.