CVE-2014-6716 in fastin
Summary
by MITRE
The fastin (aka moda.azyae.fastin.net) application 1.0 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 • 09/14/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6716 resides within the moda.azyae.fastin.net Android application version 1.0, representing a critical security flaw in the application's cryptographic implementation. This issue fundamentally undermines the security of communications between the mobile client and remote servers by failing to properly validate SSL/TLS certificates. The application's failure to perform X.509 certificate verification creates a significant attack surface that enables malicious actors to execute successful man-in-the-middle attacks against unsuspecting users.
The technical root cause of this vulnerability stems from the application's improper handling of SSL certificate validation mechanisms. When establishing secure connections to remote servers, the application should verify the authenticity of server certificates against trusted certificate authorities and perform proper certificate chain validation. However, the fastin application bypasses these essential security checks, allowing attackers to present fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the client application. This flaw directly violates established security protocols and best practices for secure communication in mobile applications.
From an operational perspective, this vulnerability exposes users to severe risks including data interception, credential theft, and unauthorized access to sensitive information. Attackers can exploit this weakness to impersonate legitimate servers and capture any data transmitted between the mobile application and backend services. The impact extends beyond simple information disclosure to potentially enable full account compromise, financial fraud, and corporate data breaches, particularly if the application handles user credentials, personal information, or financial data. This vulnerability represents a classic example of insufficient certificate validation that aligns with CWE-295, which specifically addresses improper certificate validation in security protocols.
The security implications of CVE-2014-6716 align with tactics and techniques documented in the MITRE ATT&CK framework under credential access and defense evasion categories. Attackers can leverage this vulnerability to establish persistent access to user accounts and maintain covert communication channels. The attack vector typically involves network interception where malicious actors position themselves between the mobile client and target servers, presenting forged certificates that the vulnerable application accepts without proper verification. This vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of implementing robust certificate pinning mechanisms and proper SSL/TLS validation in mobile applications.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate implementation of proper certificate validation procedures within the application. Developers must ensure that all SSL/TLS connections perform thorough certificate chain validation against trusted certificate authorities and implement certificate pinning where appropriate. The application should reject connections when certificate validation fails and provide appropriate error handling to alert users of potential security issues. Security updates should include proper implementation of certificate verification routines, and organizations should consider implementing network-level monitoring to detect and prevent exploitation attempts. Additionally, the application should be redesigned to follow secure coding practices and adhere to mobile security standards such as those defined by OWASP Mobile Security Project, which emphasizes the importance of secure communication and proper certificate handling in mobile applications.