CVE-2014-6765 in No Fuss Home Loans
Summary
by MITRE
The No Fuss Home Loans (aka com.soln.SA2CAA74BBC3AFEFE7C8BE3F3AAC499E7) application 1.0035.b0035 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 • 09/15/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6765 affects the No Fuss Home Loans Android application version 1.0035.b0035, representing a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols. This issue stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack vector that undermines the fundamental security assurances provided by transport layer security. The vulnerability specifically impacts the application's ability to establish trust with remote servers, leaving users exposed to sophisticated man-in-the-middle attacks that can compromise sensitive financial data and personal information.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of certificate verification within the application's SSL implementation, which directly violates established security protocols and best practices. This weakness allows attackers to present fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application, enabling them to intercept and manipulate communications between the mobile client and backend servers. The vulnerability falls under the category of improper certificate validation, which is classified as CWE-295 in the Common Weakness Enumeration system, specifically addressing issues related to validation of certificate authorities and certificate chains. The absence of proper certificate pinning or trust verification mechanisms creates an environment where attackers can successfully impersonate legitimate servers without detection.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, particularly given the nature of the application which handles sensitive financial information for home loan processing. Mobile banking and financial applications are prime targets for attackers due to the valuable data they process, and this flaw creates an unmitigated risk for users who may unknowingly transmit personal identification numbers, account details, and other confidential information to malicious actors. The vulnerability enables attackers to perform session hijacking, data exfiltration, and credential theft operations, potentially leading to financial fraud and identity theft. According to the MITRE ATT&CK framework, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving credential access and data interception, specifically targeting the network security protocols that protect sensitive communications.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate implementation of proper SSL certificate validation mechanisms within the application. The recommended approach includes implementing certificate pinning, where the application explicitly trusts specific certificate authorities or public keys rather than relying on the default trust store. Additionally, developers should implement certificate chain validation, ensuring that certificates are properly signed by trusted certificate authorities and that the certificate hierarchy is maintained throughout the validation process. The application should also implement certificate revocation checking through OCSP or CRL mechanisms to detect compromised certificates. Security patches should include proper error handling for certificate validation failures, ensuring that the application terminates connections when certificate validation fails rather than proceeding with untrusted communications. Organizations should also consider implementing network monitoring and intrusion detection systems to identify potential exploitation attempts and establish comprehensive security testing procedures including penetration testing and secure coding reviews to prevent similar vulnerabilities in future releases.