CVE-2014-6883 in CNNMoney Portfolio for stocks
Summary
by MITRE
The CNNMoney Portfolio for stocks (aka com.cnn.portfolio) application 1.0.2 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 • 09/20/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6883 affects the CNNMoney Portfolio application version 1.0.2 for Android devices, representing a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols. This weakness stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS connections, creating a significant attack surface that adversaries can exploit to compromise user data integrity and confidentiality. The vulnerability directly impacts the fundamental security mechanism that protects users from eavesdropping and data interception during network communications.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of certificate verification within the application's SSL implementation, which falls under the CWE-295 weakness category focusing on improper certificate validation. This deficiency allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting fraudulent SSL certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application. The application accepts any certificate without proper validation, including self-signed certificates or certificates issued by untrusted certificate authorities, effectively undermining the entire public key infrastructure that SSL/TLS protocols rely upon for secure communications.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception to encompass potential financial fraud and identity theft. Users of the CNNMoney Portfolio application may unknowingly transmit sensitive personal and financial information to malicious servers controlled by attackers. The vulnerability is particularly dangerous because it affects a mobile application that handles stock portfolio data, potentially exposing users to unauthorized access to their investment accounts, personal identification information, and trading activities. Attackers can exploit this weakness to capture login credentials, financial transactions, and other sensitive data that users trust the application to protect.
This vulnerability aligns with several ATT&CK techniques including T1046 Network Service Scanning and T1566 Phishing, as attackers can leverage the compromised application to establish persistent communication channels with malicious servers. The lack of certificate validation creates a persistent backdoor for attackers to maintain access to user data over extended periods. Organizations should consider implementing network monitoring solutions to detect anomalous SSL traffic patterns that may indicate exploitation attempts. The recommended mitigations include implementing proper certificate pinning mechanisms, enforcing strict certificate validation procedures, and updating the application to include robust SSL/TLS certificate verification capabilities. Additionally, security professionals should conduct comprehensive penetration testing to identify similar vulnerabilities in other mobile applications and ensure that all SSL/TLS implementations follow established security best practices.