CVE-2014-6022 in Versent Books
Summary
by MITRE
The Versent Books (aka com.versentbooks) application 1.1.99 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 • 09/10/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6022 affects the Versent Books Android application version 1.1.99, representing a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols. This weakness resides in the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack vector that undermines the fundamental security guarantees of encrypted communications. The vulnerability specifically targets the certificate verification process that should occur when establishing secure connections between the mobile client and remote servers, allowing malicious actors to exploit this gap in security implementation.
The technical flaw manifests as an absence of proper certificate chain validation and trust verification mechanisms within the application's networking stack. When the Versent Books application establishes SSL connections to its backend servers, it fails to perform the essential steps required to verify that certificates presented by servers are legitimate and issued by trusted Certificate Authorities. This includes checking certificate expiration dates, validating certificate signatures, and ensuring that the certificate chain is properly constructed and trusted. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation," and represents a classic example of weak cryptographic implementation that violates fundamental security principles.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability creates a severe risk landscape for users of the Versent Books application, as it enables man-in-the-middle attacks that can completely compromise the confidentiality and integrity of data transmitted between the mobile device and backend services. Attackers can craft malicious certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application, allowing them to intercept, modify, or steal sensitive information including user credentials, personal data, and any other information transmitted through the application's secure channels. The impact extends beyond simple data theft to potentially enabling further attacks such as session hijacking, credential replay, and unauthorized access to user accounts within the application ecosystem.
The security implications of this vulnerability align with several techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, particularly those related to credential access and defense evasion. Attackers can leverage this weakness to establish persistent access to user accounts and sensitive data, while the lack of certificate verification makes detection more difficult as the malicious activity appears to originate from legitimate-looking secure connections. Organizations and users should implement immediate mitigations including updating to patched versions of the application, implementing network-level monitoring to detect unusual certificate behavior, and potentially deploying additional security controls such as network segmentation or proxy-based certificate validation. The vulnerability underscores the critical importance of proper certificate validation in mobile applications and serves as a reminder of the necessity for robust cryptographic implementation practices in all security-sensitive software components.