CVE-2014-6936 in IDS 2013
Summary
by MITRE
The IDS 2013 (aka de.mobileeventguide.ids2013) application 1.21 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 • 09/23/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-6936 affects the IDS 2013 mobile application version 1.21 for Android platforms, 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 surface that compromises the integrity of encrypted communications between the mobile client and remote servers. The vulnerability specifically targets the certificate verification mechanism that should ensure the authenticity of SSL servers before establishing secure connections.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of certificate validation within the application's SSL implementation, allowing attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application. This weakness operates at the core of the application's security architecture, where proper certificate chain validation, hostname verification, and trust anchor checking mechanisms are entirely absent or improperly implemented. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which specifically addresses "Improper Certificate Validation," and represents a fundamental failure in the application's cryptographic security controls. The lack of certificate verification means that the application accepts any certificate presented by a server without performing the essential checks that would normally validate the certificate's authenticity and ensure it was issued by a trusted certificate authority.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted, as it enables attackers to intercept and manipulate all SSL-encrypted communications between the mobile application and its backend services. An attacker positioned within the network traffic path can present a malicious certificate that the application accepts without question, allowing them to decrypt, modify, or redirect sensitive data flows. This capability particularly threatens applications handling confidential information such as user credentials, personal data, financial transactions, or proprietary business information. The vulnerability is especially dangerous in enterprise environments where mobile applications frequently communicate with internal servers, as it provides attackers with a pathway to access sensitive corporate data and potentially escalate privileges within the network infrastructure.
From a threat modeling perspective, this vulnerability aligns with ATT&CK technique T1041, which covers "Exfiltration Over C2 Channel," and T1566, covering "Phishing for Information," as attackers can leverage the compromised communication channel to exfiltrate data or harvest sensitive information from users. The vulnerability also relates to T1571, which addresses "Modify System Image", as the compromised application can be used to establish persistent access to systems through the man-in-the-middle position. Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing proper certificate validation mechanisms including certificate pinning, hostname verification, and trust anchor validation. Organizations should immediately update the affected application to a version that properly implements SSL certificate validation, and consider implementing additional network-level security controls such as SSL inspection and monitoring for suspicious certificate usage patterns. The vulnerability demonstrates the critical importance of cryptographic security implementation in mobile applications and underscores the necessity of following security best practices such as those outlined in OWASP Mobile Top 10 and NIST Special Publication 800-52 for secure mobile application development.