CVE-2014-6779 in Cart App
Summary
by MITRE
The Cart App (aka com.virtecha.mobilewallet) application 1.5 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 • 09/16/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6779 affects the Cart App application version 1.5 for Android operating systems, presenting a critical security flaw in the application's SSL/TLS certificate verification mechanism. This weakness resides in the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates presented by SSL servers during secure communication sessions. The vulnerability stems from the application's implementation of network security protocols that bypass essential certificate chain validation procedures, creating an attack surface that malicious actors can exploit to compromise the integrity of secure communications.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of certificate pinning or proper certificate validation within the application's secure socket layer implementation. When the Cart App establishes connections to remote servers, it fails to perform the standard certificate verification processes that should confirm the authenticity of server certificates against trusted certificate authorities. This absence allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application. The vulnerability specifically targets the SSL/TLS handshake process where certificate validation should occur, but instead accepts any certificate presented without proper cryptographic verification or trust chain confirmation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, particularly for a mobile wallet application that handles sensitive financial and personal data. Attackers can exploit this weakness to intercept and manipulate communications between the mobile application and its backend servers, potentially gaining access to user credentials, transaction details, financial information, and other confidential data. The vulnerability undermines the fundamental security model of secure communications by allowing attackers to establish fraudulent secure connections that appear legitimate to the application. This creates a false sense of security for users while simultaneously exposing their sensitive information to unauthorized access and potential theft.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation," and represents a classic example of insufficient certificate validation in mobile applications. The attack vector falls under the MITM category in the MITRE ATT&CK framework, specifically mapping to technique T1573.002 for "Tunneling through Secure Shell (SSH) and Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) protocols." The weakness directly violates security best practices outlined in OWASP Mobile Top 10 and NIST guidelines for mobile application security, particularly concerning secure communication implementation and certificate management. Organizations should implement certificate pinning mechanisms, proper trust store management, and regular security assessments to prevent such vulnerabilities from compromising user data in mobile wallet applications. The remediation approach requires complete overhaul of the SSL/TLS implementation within the application to ensure proper certificate validation and chain of trust verification.