CVE-2014-6002 in DTE Energy
Summary
by MITRE
The DTE Energy (aka com.dteenergy.mydte) application 3.0.3 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 • 09/09/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6002 resides within the DTE Energy mobile application version 3.0.3 for Android platforms, representing a critical security flaw in the application's SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanism. This weakness fundamentally undermines the secure communication channel between the mobile client and remote servers, creating a significant attack surface that malicious actors can exploit to compromise user data integrity and confidentiality. The application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates from SSL servers constitutes a severe deviation from established security protocols and industry best practices for mobile application security.
The technical flaw manifests in the application's complete absence of certificate pinning and proper certificate verification procedures during SSL handshakes. When the Android application establishes secure connections to DTE Energy servers, it fails to perform the essential certificate chain validation that should confirm the server's identity against trusted certificate authorities. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation" and represents a fundamental breakdown in the cryptographic security infrastructure that mobile applications must maintain. The absence of certificate verification creates a scenario where attackers can present fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application, enabling them to intercept and manipulate all data transmitted between the mobile device and the server.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability exposes users to substantial risk of man-in-the-middle attacks that can result in the theft of sensitive personal and financial information. Attackers can leverage this weakness to impersonate legitimate DTE Energy servers and establish fake secure connections, potentially capturing login credentials, account details, billing information, and other personally identifiable data. The impact extends beyond individual user privacy concerns to encompass potential financial fraud, identity theft, and compromise of critical infrastructure communication channels. The vulnerability affects all users of the affected application version and creates persistent exposure as long as the application remains installed on devices without proper security updates.
The security implications of this vulnerability align with ATT&CK technique T1041, which describes "Exfiltration Over C2 Channel" and demonstrates how compromised communication channels can facilitate data exfiltration. Additionally, the flaw represents a failure in the application's security architecture that violates fundamental principles outlined in the OWASP Mobile Security Project's M3: Insecure Data Storage and M5: Security Decisions via Untrusted Inputs. Organizations should implement immediate mitigations including mandatory certificate pinning, proper certificate validation routines, and comprehensive security testing of all cryptographic implementations. The application should be updated to enforce certificate chain validation against trusted certificate authorities and implement certificate pinning to prevent the use of fraudulent certificates. Users should be advised to uninstall the vulnerable version and await security patches that address the fundamental certificate validation failure that renders the application's secure communication capabilities ineffective against determined attackers.