CVE-2014-7450 in allnurses
Summary
by MITRE
The allnurses (aka com.tapatalk.allnursescom) application 3.4.10 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 • 10/07/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-7450 affects the allnurses Android application version 3.4.10, representing a critical security flaw in the application's secure communication implementation. This issue falls under the category of improper certificate verification within the SSL/TLS protocol stack, creating a significant attack surface that adversaries can exploit to compromise user data integrity and confidentiality. The application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates from SSL servers constitutes a fundamental breakdown in the cryptographic security framework that should protect user communications.
The technical flaw manifests as the application's complete absence of certificate validation mechanisms during SSL/TLS handshakes. This vulnerability directly maps to CWE-295, which addresses "Improper Certificate Validation," and represents a critical failure in the certificate pinning and validation process. When the application establishes secure connections to remote servers, it accepts any certificate presented without performing the necessary checks against trusted certificate authorities or validating certificate chains. This weakness enables attackers to perform man-in-the-middle attacks by presenting fraudulent certificates that appear legitimate to the application, thereby bypassing the security assurances that SSL/TLS protocols are designed to provide.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception to encompass complete session hijacking capabilities for malicious actors. Attackers can exploit this flaw to impersonate legitimate servers, redirect users to malicious endpoints, and capture sensitive information transmitted through the application. This includes personal data, login credentials, and potentially confidential healthcare information that users might share within the nursing community platform. The vulnerability is particularly concerning given the nature of healthcare applications, where the compromise of user communications could lead to serious privacy violations and potential misuse of sensitive medical information. The attack vector requires minimal technical expertise, making it accessible to a broad range of threat actors.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability should focus on implementing robust certificate validation mechanisms within the application's SSL/TLS implementation. Security measures must include proper certificate chain validation, certificate pinning for critical endpoints, and the enforcement of certificate authority trust models. Organizations should also consider implementing additional security layers such as certificate transparency monitoring and regular security audits of their mobile applications. The remediation process requires code-level modifications to ensure that all SSL/TLS connections properly validate server certificates against trusted root authorities and implement proper error handling for certificate validation failures. This vulnerability highlights the critical importance of cryptographic implementation best practices and demonstrates how seemingly simple oversights can create significant security risks in mobile applications. The issue aligns with ATT&CK technique T1046, which covers network service scanning, and T1566, focusing on credential harvesting through spearphishing, as compromised applications can facilitate both reconnaissance and data exfiltration activities.