CVE-2014-5830 in Farm Frenzy Gold
Summary
by MITRE
The Farm Frenzy Gold (aka com.herocraft.game.farmfrenzy.gold) application 1.0.1 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 identified as CVE-2014-5830 affects the Farm Frenzy Gold Android application version 1.0.1, representing a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols. This weakness stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack surface that malicious actors can exploit to compromise user data and system integrity. The vulnerability directly impacts the application's ability to establish trust with remote servers, fundamentally undermining the security assurances that SSL/TLS encryption is designed to provide.
The technical flaw manifests in the application's certificate validation mechanism, which operates outside the established security protocols defined by industry standards. When an Android application establishes SSL connections, it should verify the server's X.509 certificate against a trusted certificate authority to ensure the authenticity of the connection endpoint. The Farm Frenzy Gold application bypasses this critical verification step, allowing attackers to present forged certificates that appear legitimate to the application. This vulnerability maps directly to CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation" in security protocols, and represents a fundamental failure in the application's secure communication implementation. The absence of proper certificate pinning or validation creates an environment where man-in-the-middle attacks can succeed without detection.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception, as it enables attackers to gain unauthorized access to sensitive user information and potentially manipulate application functionality. An attacker positioned within the network traffic path can intercept communications between the mobile application and its backend servers, potentially accessing user credentials, personal data, payment information, or other confidential details transmitted through the insecure connection. This vulnerability particularly affects mobile applications that handle user authentication, financial transactions, or personal information, as the compromised communication channel provides attackers with multiple avenues for exploitation. The attack vector aligns with ATT&CK technique T1041, which describes "Exfiltration Over Command and Control Channel" and demonstrates how insecure communication channels can facilitate data theft and further compromise of affected systems.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements to prevent similar issues in future releases. The primary fix involves implementing proper X.509 certificate validation within the application's SSL/TLS connection handling code, ensuring that all certificates are verified against trusted certificate authorities before establishing secure connections. Additionally, implementing certificate pinning techniques can provide an extra layer of security by explicitly defining which certificates or certificate authorities the application will trust, preventing attackers from using fraudulent certificates even if they can compromise the certificate validation process. Organizations should also consider implementing certificate transparency monitoring and regular security audits to identify and address similar vulnerabilities across their mobile application portfolio. The remediation efforts should align with industry best practices outlined in OWASP Mobile Security Project recommendations for secure communication implementation, ensuring that future versions of the application maintain proper security posture against evolving threats.