CVE-2014-7776 in Kavita KS
Summary
by MITRE
The Kavita KS (aka com.snaplion.kavitaks) application 2.4 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 • 10/18/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2014-7776 resides within the Kavita KS Android application version 2.4, specifically targeting the application's handling of SSL/TLS certificate validation mechanisms. This flaw represents a critical security weakness that directly impacts the application's ability to establish secure communications with remote servers. The vulnerability stems from the application's failure to properly validate X.509 certificates during SSL handshakes, creating a pathway for malicious actors to exploit the trust relationship between the client and server. According to CWE-295, this issue falls under the category of improper certificate validation, which is a well-documented weakness in cryptographic implementations that undermines the fundamental security guarantees of SSL/TLS protocols.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability enables man-in-the-middle attackers to perform sophisticated interception attacks by presenting crafted certificates that appear legitimate to the vulnerable application. When the application fails to verify certificate chains, it accepts certificates from untrusted authorities or certificates that have been tampered with, effectively breaking the cryptographic security model that SSL/TLS is designed to provide. This weakness allows attackers to establish fake server identities and decrypt sensitive communications, potentially gaining access to user credentials, personal data, or other confidential information transmitted through the application. The vulnerability operates at the transport layer security level, making it particularly dangerous as it can compromise all data flowing through the application's network connections without requiring additional privileges or complex attack vectors.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data interception to encompass potential identity theft, financial fraud, and privacy violations. Users of the Kavita KS application may unknowingly transmit sensitive information to attacker-controlled servers, believing they are communicating with legitimate services. The attack surface is particularly concerning given that this vulnerability affects an Android application that likely handles user accounts, personal preferences, or other sensitive data. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to technique T1041 for data encryption for exfiltration and T1566 for credential access through social engineering, as the compromised application can be used to collect user credentials and personal information. The vulnerability also aligns with T1573 for encrypted channel creation, as attackers can leverage the compromised trust model to establish secure communication channels for their malicious activities.
Mitigation strategies for CVE-2014-7776 must focus on implementing proper certificate validation mechanisms within the application. Developers should implement certificate pinning techniques to ensure that only specific certificates or certificate authorities are accepted, preventing the acceptance of fraudulent certificates. The application should enforce strict certificate chain validation, including proper hostname verification and certificate expiration checks. Security patches should be implemented to upgrade the SSL/TLS library and ensure that the application uses modern cryptographic standards. Additionally, network monitoring should be enhanced to detect anomalous certificate behavior, and users should be educated about the risks of connecting to untrusted networks. Organizations should also consider implementing network-level security controls such as deep packet inspection to detect and prevent man-in-the-middle attacks targeting vulnerable applications. The remediation process should include comprehensive code review to identify other potential cryptographic weaknesses and ensure that all network communications follow secure coding practices as recommended by industry standards such as NIST SP 800-52 for certificate management.