CVE-2014-6926 in Allt om Brollop
Summary
by MITRE
The Allt om Brollop (aka com.paperton.wl.alltombrollop) application 1.53 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 • 09/22/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6926 affects the Allt om Brollop Android application version 1.53, representing a critical security flaw in the application's cryptographic implementation. This issue stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL/TLS communications, creating a significant security gap that exposes users to sophisticated attack vectors. The flaw directly impacts the application's ability to establish secure connections with remote servers, fundamentally undermining the integrity of the communication channel between the mobile client and backend services. From a security perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-295, which specifically addresses the improper certificate validation issue, and represents a classic example of insufficient certificate path validation that has been documented across numerous mobile applications over the years. The vulnerability's classification as a man-in-the-middle attack vector indicates that adversaries can exploit this weakness to intercept and manipulate communications without detection.
The technical implementation of this flaw manifests in the application's SSL/TLS handshake process where certificate verification is entirely bypassed or inadequately performed. When the application establishes a secure connection to a server, it fails to validate the certificate against trusted Certificate Authority roots, check certificate expiration dates, or verify certificate signatures. This allows attackers to present fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application, enabling them to masquerade as trusted servers. The attack scenario typically involves an attacker positioned between the mobile device and the target server, capable of intercepting and modifying network traffic. The vulnerability is particularly concerning because it affects the fundamental security mechanisms that protect sensitive user data, including personal information, authentication credentials, and potentially financial transaction details that may be transmitted through the application's communication channels. The implementation flaw falls under the ATT&CK technique T1046, which involves network service scanning, and T1566, which covers credential harvesting through social engineering, as the vulnerability enables both passive and active attack scenarios.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception to encompass complete compromise of user trust and data integrity. Attackers can exploit this weakness to obtain sensitive information such as user credentials, personal identification data, and potentially financial information that users may input into the application. The vulnerability's presence in a wedding planning application is particularly concerning as such applications often handle highly sensitive personal data including intimate details, financial information, and private communications between users. The security implications are amplified by the fact that the vulnerability affects the application's core functionality, meaning that every interaction with the application's backend services is potentially vulnerable to interception. Organizations and users should consider this vulnerability as a critical risk that could lead to identity theft, financial fraud, and privacy violations. The vulnerability also impacts the application's compliance with industry security standards and regulations, potentially exposing developers and organizations to legal and regulatory consequences.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-6926 should focus on implementing proper SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanisms within the application. The most effective approach involves updating the application to enforce strict certificate validation including certificate chain verification, expiration date checking, and signature validation against trusted root certificates. Developers should implement certificate pinning techniques to prevent the application from accepting certificates from untrusted authorities, and ensure that the application uses the system's trusted certificate store rather than implementing custom certificate validation logic. Security updates should be deployed immediately to address this vulnerability, and the application should be re-audited to ensure that no other similar certificate validation flaws exist. Organizations should also implement network monitoring to detect potential exploitation attempts and establish incident response procedures to address potential breaches. The remediation process should include comprehensive code review to identify and fix similar certificate validation issues, and adherence to security best practices such as those outlined in the OWASP Mobile Security Project and NIST guidelines for mobile application security. Additionally, regular security assessments and penetration testing should be conducted to ensure that the application maintains secure communication channels and that all cryptographic implementations meet current security standards and industry requirements.