CVE-2018-13201 in TiTok - Ticket Token
Summary
by MITRE
The sell function of a smart contract implementation for TiTok - Ticket Token (Contract Name: MyAdvancedToken7), an Ethereum token, has an integer overflow in which "amount * sellPrice" can be zero, consequently reducing a seller's assets.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/25/2020
The vulnerability identified in CVE-2018-13201 affects the MyAdvancedToken7 smart contract implementation for TiTok - Ticket Token on the Ethereum blockchain. This represents a critical integer overflow flaw that fundamentally compromises the contract's financial integrity and asset management capabilities. The vulnerability specifically manifests within the sell function where mathematical operations fail to properly validate input parameters, creating a scenario where arithmetic overflow conditions can occur without proper boundary checks.
The technical implementation flaw occurs when the sell function processes transactions involving token sales where the calculation "amount * sellPrice" can result in zero values due to improper integer handling. This condition arises from the lack of overflow protection mechanisms in the smart contract code, allowing malicious actors to manipulate transaction parameters in ways that bypass normal validation checks. The vulnerability stems from the contract's failure to implement proper unsigned integer overflow detection, which is a well-documented weakness in smart contract development practices. This issue directly maps to CWE-190, Integer Overflow or Wraparound, which classifies such vulnerabilities as critical security flaws in software systems where arithmetic operations exceed their defined limits.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple financial loss, creating potential systemic risks within the token ecosystem. When the sell function encounters scenarios where "amount * sellPrice" evaluates to zero, it effectively reduces the seller's asset balance without proper transactional accounting, leading to unauthorized wealth transfer or asset depletion. Attackers can exploit this by carefully crafting transaction parameters that trigger the overflow condition, potentially enabling them to manipulate token balances in their favor while simultaneously depleting legitimate sellers' assets. The vulnerability creates a scenario where the contract's accounting system becomes unreliable, undermining trust in the entire token implementation.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate code-level remediation through comprehensive input validation and arithmetic overflow protection mechanisms. The smart contract implementation must incorporate explicit checks to validate that multiplication operations do not result in zero or overflow conditions, utilizing techniques such as require statements with boundary conditions or employing safe math libraries that prevent integer overflows. Organizations should implement comprehensive testing protocols including formal verification and automated smart contract auditing to identify similar vulnerabilities across their blockchain implementations. The remediation process should follow established security standards and best practices for smart contract development, ensuring that all mathematical operations include proper overflow detection and that transactional integrity is maintained throughout all contract functions. This vulnerability highlights the critical importance of rigorous security testing and code review processes in blockchain smart contract development, particularly when dealing with financial transaction processing and asset management functions.