CVE-2014-7068 in Student Activities
Summary
by MITRE
The Neumann Student Activities (aka com.appmakr.app153856) application 216607 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 • 09/29/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-7068 affects the Neumann Student Activities Android application, specifically version 216607, which is distributed under the package name com.appmakr.app153856. This represents a critical security flaw in the application's implementation of secure communication protocols, where the software fails to properly validate SSL/TLS certificates during network connections. The absence of certificate verification creates a significant attack surface that malicious actors can exploit to compromise the integrity of communications between the mobile application and remote servers. This vulnerability falls under the broader category of insecure communication practices that have been consistently identified as high-risk in mobile application security assessments and aligns with CWE-295, which addresses improper certificate validation in security protocols.
The technical flaw manifests in the application's failure to implement proper certificate pinning or validation mechanisms when establishing SSL connections to remote servers. This weakness allows attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting forged SSL certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application. The attack vector typically involves intercepting network traffic and replacing legitimate certificates with malicious ones that the application accepts without proper verification. The vulnerability specifically impacts the application's ability to distinguish between authentic and forged server certificates, creating opportunities for attackers to decrypt sensitive data, inject malicious content, or redirect users to fraudulent endpoints. This flaw directly violates fundamental security principles of trust establishment in secure communications and represents a classic example of inadequate cryptographic implementation.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data theft to encompass complete compromise of user privacy and application integrity. Attackers can exploit this weakness to obtain sensitive user information including personal data, login credentials, and potentially financial information transmitted through the application. The vulnerability affects all users of the specific application version and creates persistent security risks as long as the flaw remains unpatched. Organizations relying on this application for student services face potential regulatory violations and reputational damage if user data is compromised through this attack vector. The impact is particularly severe given that student activities applications often handle sensitive personal information and may be used to access institutional systems, making this vulnerability attractive to both opportunistic and targeted attackers.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should include immediate implementation of proper SSL certificate validation mechanisms within the application. The recommended approach involves implementing certificate pinning techniques where the application explicitly trusts specific certificates or certificate authorities rather than relying on the default trust store. Security professionals should also consider implementing certificate validation libraries that properly verify certificate chains and expiration dates. Organizations should follow ATT&CK framework guidance for mobile application security by ensuring proper certificate validation is part of their secure coding practices and regular security assessments. The fix requires modification to the application's network communication code to enforce proper certificate verification before establishing secure connections, with additional monitoring to detect potential certificate-related security events. Regular security audits and penetration testing should be conducted to ensure that similar vulnerabilities are not present in other network components or application features.