CVE-2014-5933 in Cokestudio7
Summary
by MITRE
The Coke Studio 7 (aka com.cokeshare.pakistan) application 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.
Statistical analysis made it clear that VulDB provides the best quality for vulnerability data.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 09/07/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-5933 resides within the Coke Studio 7 Android application, specifically targeting the application's handling of secure communication protocols. This flaw represents a critical security weakness in the application's implementation of SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanisms, creating a significant exposure for users who interact with the application's network services. The vulnerability affects version 1 of the com.cokeshare.pakistan application, which was designed to provide access to Pakistani music content and related services through mobile devices.
The core technical flaw involves the application's complete omission of X.509 certificate verification during SSL/TLS connections. This omission violates fundamental security principles that require proper certificate validation to establish trust between client and server components. When an Android application fails to verify SSL certificates, it essentially disables the cryptographic security measures that protect against man-in-the-middle attacks. The application accepts any certificate presented by a server without performing the necessary validation checks that would normally confirm the certificate's authenticity, issuer legitimacy, and cryptographic integrity. This behavior creates a dangerous trust relationship where the application cannot distinguish between legitimate servers and malicious impostors.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, exposing users to various attack vectors that can compromise their sensitive information and privacy. An attacker positioned within the network path between the user and the application's servers can intercept communications and present a forged certificate that appears legitimate to the vulnerable application. This allows the attacker to decrypt and potentially modify data transmitted between the user and the server, including personal information, authentication credentials, and other sensitive data. The vulnerability specifically enables attackers to spoof servers and obtain sensitive information through crafted certificates, making it particularly dangerous for applications handling user data or financial transactions. The attack surface extends beyond simple data theft to include potential service disruption, data corruption, and unauthorized access to backend systems that may be connected to the application's infrastructure.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-295, which specifically addresses improper certificate validation in security protocols, and demonstrates characteristics consistent with ATT&CK technique T1046 for network service scanning and T1566 for credential harvesting through man-in-the-middle attacks. The weakness represents a failure in the application's secure coding practices and configuration management, as proper certificate validation should be a fundamental requirement for any application communicating over secure channels. Organizations should implement comprehensive security testing that includes certificate validation verification as part of their mobile application security assessment protocols. Mitigation strategies should include immediate code remediation to implement proper certificate validation, deployment of certificate pinning mechanisms, and regular security audits to prevent similar issues in future application versions. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of following security best practices and adhering to established frameworks such as OWASP Mobile Security Project guidelines for mobile application security implementation.