CVE-2014-6820 in Amebra Ameba
Summary
by MITRE
The Amebra Ameba (aka jp.honeytrap15.amebra) application 1.0.0 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 • 03/20/2018
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6820 affects the Amebra Ameba Android application version 1.0.0, representing a critical security flaw in the application's secure communication implementation. This issue stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack surface that exposes users to sophisticated man-in-the-middle exploitation techniques. The vulnerability specifically targets the certificate verification process, which is fundamental to establishing trust in secure communications between mobile applications and remote servers.
The technical flaw manifests in the application's complete absence of SSL certificate validation mechanisms, allowing attackers to present maliciously crafted certificates that would be accepted as legitimate by the vulnerable application. This weakness directly violates established security protocols and standards, as proper certificate validation requires verification of certificate chains, expiration dates, and issuer authenticity. The vulnerability falls under CWE-295, which specifically addresses improper certificate validation in security protocols, and represents a classic example of insufficient certificate, key, and trust validation that enables cryptographic attacks. Attackers can exploit this weakness by intercepting network traffic and presenting forged certificates that appear legitimate to the application, thereby compromising the integrity of all communications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception, as it enables comprehensive surveillance and data manipulation capabilities for malicious actors. An attacker positioned in the network path between the vulnerable application and its target servers can establish fraudulent secure connections, potentially accessing sensitive user information, credentials, or personal data that would normally be protected by SSL/TLS encryption. This vulnerability particularly affects applications that handle confidential information, as it undermines the entire cryptographic security model that users expect when communicating over secure channels. The attack vector is particularly dangerous in environments where users connect to untrusted networks, such as public wifi hotspots, where the man-in-the-middle position can be easily established.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability must address both immediate remediation and long-term architectural improvements to the application's security posture. The primary solution involves implementing proper certificate pinning mechanisms that validate certificate chains against trusted authorities and maintain a whitelist of acceptable certificates or public keys. Organizations should also consider implementing certificate transparency checks and ensuring that the application performs comprehensive validation of certificate attributes including subject names, issuer information, and cryptographic signatures. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to techniques involving credential access and defense evasion, as attackers can leverage this weakness to establish persistent access to user accounts and data. Additionally, implementing network monitoring to detect unusual certificate behavior and establishing regular security audits of mobile application code can help identify similar vulnerabilities in other applications within the organization's ecosystem.