CVE-2014-7085 in i Newspaper
Summary
by MITRE
The i Newspaper (aka com.independent.thei) application @7F080184 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-2014-7085 affects the i Newspaper Android application developed by Independent Communications Limited. This security flaw resides in the application's implementation of SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanisms, specifically at the memory address 7F080184 within the application's codebase. The issue represents a critical weakness in the application's cryptographic security infrastructure that directly impacts the integrity of secure communications between the mobile client and remote servers.
The technical flaw manifests as a complete absence of X.509 certificate verification within the application's SSL implementation. This means that when the i Newspaper application establishes secure connections to its backend servers, it fails to validate the digital certificates presented by those servers against trusted certificate authorities. The vulnerability stems from improper implementation of certificate pinning or certificate validation logic, allowing the application to accept any certificate presented by a server regardless of its authenticity or trustworthiness. This represents a fundamental failure in the application's security architecture and directly violates established security best practices for mobile application development.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe and multifaceted. Man-in-the-middle attackers can exploit this weakness to intercept and manipulate communications between the i Newspaper application and its servers. Attackers can present forged certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application, enabling them to eavesdrop on sensitive data transmission including user credentials, personal information, and potentially financial data. This vulnerability creates an attack surface that allows for data exfiltration, session hijacking, and the injection of malicious content into the application's communication channels. The implications extend beyond simple privacy concerns to encompass potential financial fraud, identity theft, and corporate espionage scenarios.
From a cybersecurity framework perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-295 which addresses improper certificate validation in security protocols. The flaw also maps to ATT&CK technique T1041 which describes secure channel protocols and T1566 which covers credential harvesting through social engineering. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic case of insufficient certificate validation that violates NIST SP 800-52 guidelines for certificate management and the OWASP Mobile Top 10 M3 security weakness related to insecure communication. Organizations should implement proper certificate pinning mechanisms, utilize trusted certificate authorities, and regularly audit their mobile applications for cryptographic security flaws. The remediation requires complete reimplementation of SSL/TLS certificate validation logic to ensure proper verification against trusted certificate authorities and implementation of certificate pinning strategies to prevent the acceptance of untrusted certificates.