CVE-2018-13210 in Providence Crypto Casino
Summary
by MITRE
The sell function of a smart contract implementation for Providence Crypto Casino (PVE) (Contract Name: ProvidenceCasinoToken), 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-2018-13210 affects the Providence Crypto Casino (PVE) smart contract implementation on the Ethereum blockchain, specifically within the sell function of the ProvidenceCasinoToken contract. This represents a critical integer overflow vulnerability that fundamentally compromises the contract's ability to accurately process token transactions and maintain proper asset accounting. The flaw manifests when the contract attempts to calculate the value of tokens being sold through the mathematical operation "amount * sellPrice" where the result can potentially evaluate to zero due to improper integer handling.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from inadequate input validation and arithmetic overflow protection within the smart contract's sell function. When a user attempts to sell tokens, the contract performs a multiplication operation between the token amount and the current sell price to determine the total value. However, due to the absence of proper overflow checks and potentially using unsigned integer types with insufficient bit-width handling, the multiplication can produce unexpected results including zero values. This mathematical anomaly directly impacts the contract's accounting system and user asset management capabilities.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple financial miscalculations to potentially enable unauthorized asset manipulation and complete loss of user funds. When "amount * sellPrice" evaluates to zero, sellers effectively lose their tokens without receiving any compensation, as the contract cannot properly process the transaction value. This creates a scenario where users may attempt to sell tokens and receive no payment while simultaneously losing their entire token holdings. The vulnerability undermines the fundamental trust model of the smart contract system and creates opportunities for financial loss that could affect multiple users simultaneously.
From a cybersecurity perspective, this vulnerability aligns with CWE-190, Integer Overflow or Wraparound, which specifically addresses issues where integer arithmetic operations produce results that exceed the maximum value representable by the data type. The ATT&CK framework categorizes this as a Smart Contract Vulnerability that can be exploited through code manipulation and transaction manipulation techniques. The vulnerability also relates to CWE-699, Software Vulnerability, and CWE-754, Improper Check for Unusual or Exceptional Conditions, as the contract fails to properly validate transaction inputs and handle exceptional mathematical conditions.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate contract redeployment with proper integer overflow protections and input validation mechanisms. The recommended approach includes implementing explicit bounds checking before arithmetic operations, utilizing safe math libraries that automatically handle overflow conditions, and incorporating comprehensive input validation for all transaction parameters. Additionally, the contract should implement proper error handling that prevents zero-value transactions from being processed and ensures that all mathematical operations maintain predictable behavior. Regular smart contract audits and formal verification processes should be established to identify similar vulnerabilities in the codebase. The security team must also consider implementing emergency stop mechanisms or upgrade capabilities that can be activated to prevent further exploitation while patches are being deployed.