CVE-2014-5902 in UA Cinemas - Mobile ticketing
Summary
by MITRE
The UA Cinemas - Mobile ticketing (aka com.mtel.uacinemaapps) application 2.9 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 • 09/05/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-5902 affects the UA Cinemas mobile ticketing application version 2.9 for Android devices, representing a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communications. This issue resides within the application's cryptographic certificate verification mechanisms, specifically targeting the X.509 certificate validation process that is fundamental to establishing secure SSL/TLS connections between mobile applications and remote servers. The absence of proper certificate verification creates a significant attack surface that adversaries can exploit to compromise the integrity of communications between the mobile client and backend services.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete failure to validate SSL server certificates against trusted certificate authorities, allowing attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which describes improper certificate validation, and represents a classic example of weak cryptographic implementation in mobile applications. The application's failure to implement proper certificate pinning or trust validation mechanisms means that any attacker who can intercept network traffic or position themselves within the communication path can present a malicious certificate that the application will accept without question. This weakness is particularly dangerous in mobile applications that handle sensitive user data such as personal information, payment details, or ticketing data.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception, as it enables attackers to not only eavesdrop on communications but also to actively manipulate data in transit. Mobile users connecting to the UA Cinemas application over unsecured networks become vulnerable to credential theft, session hijacking, and data manipulation attacks that could compromise their personal information and financial transactions. The vulnerability affects the application's ability to maintain confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity of communications, which are fundamental security requirements for mobile applications handling sensitive user data. This weakness particularly impacts users in public Wi-Fi environments or other untrusted network conditions where attackers have greater opportunities to intercept and manipulate traffic. The vulnerability also violates industry standards such as those outlined in the OWASP Mobile Security Project, which emphasizes the importance of secure communication channels and proper certificate validation in mobile applications.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability must address the core issue of certificate verification implementation within the mobile application. Organizations should implement certificate pinning mechanisms that explicitly define which certificates or certificate authorities the application will trust, preventing the acceptance of forged certificates from attackers. The application should be updated to perform proper X.509 certificate validation against trusted root certificate authorities and implement certificate chain validation to ensure the complete trust path. Security patches should include the implementation of proper SSL/TLS certificate validation routines that check certificate expiration dates, subject names, and certificate authority signatures. Additionally, the application should be designed to fail securely when certificate validation fails, preventing the application from continuing operations with untrusted certificates. Network security measures such as implementing secure communication protocols, using encrypted connections, and monitoring for suspicious certificate usage patterns should also be deployed to provide additional layers of protection against exploitation of this vulnerability.