CVE-2014-5821 in Guitar Tuner Free - GuitarTuna
Summary
by MITRE
The Guitar Tuner Free - GuitarTuna (aka com.ovelin.guitartuna) application 2.4.5 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 • 09/02/2024
The vulnerability described in CVE-2014-5821 represents a critical security flaw in the Guitar Tuner Free application for Android platforms. This issue stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack surface that enables man-in-the-middle adversaries to compromise the application's security posture. The vulnerability affects version 2.4.5 of the com.ovelin.guitartuna application, which was designed to provide guitar tuning functionality but inadvertently exposed users to serious privacy and data integrity risks.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability lies in the application's improper implementation of SSL certificate validation mechanisms. When establishing secure connections to remote servers, the application fails to perform essential certificate verification steps including chain of trust validation, hostname verification, and certificate expiration checks. This weakness allows attackers to present maliciously crafted certificates that appear legitimate to the application, effectively bypassing the intended security protections of SSL/TLS encryption. The vulnerability specifically aligns with CWE-295, which addresses improper certificate validation in secure communications, and represents a classic example of weak cryptographic implementation that undermines the fundamental security guarantees of transport layer security.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception to encompass potential credential theft, session hijacking, and unauthorized access to user information. Mobile applications that rely on secure communication channels for user authentication, data synchronization, or cloud service integration become particularly vulnerable when they fail to validate server certificates properly. Attackers can exploit this weakness to intercept sensitive user data, including personal information, login credentials, or any data transmitted between the application and remote servers. The vulnerability creates an environment where attackers can establish fake secure connections that appear legitimate to the application, allowing them to capture and manipulate data in transit.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate implementation of proper SSL certificate validation procedures within the application. Developers should implement comprehensive certificate pinning mechanisms that verify server certificates against known good certificates or public key fingerprints. The application must perform complete certificate chain validation, including checking certificate expiration dates, verifying certificate authorities, and ensuring hostname matches between the certificate and the target server. Additionally, implementing certificate transparency checks and maintaining up-to-date certificate validation libraries can significantly reduce the risk of exploitation. Organizations should also consider implementing network monitoring solutions to detect unusual certificate validation behavior and establish regular security auditing processes to identify similar weaknesses in other applications. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of proper cryptographic implementation in mobile applications and serves as a reminder of the ATT&CK framework's relevance in identifying and mitigating secure communication weaknesses that can lead to comprehensive system compromise.