CVE-2018-13671 in DinsteinCoin
Summary
by MITRE
The mintToken function of a smart contract implementation for DinsteinCoin, an Ethereum token, has an integer overflow that allows the owner of the contract to set the balance of an arbitrary user to any value.
If you want to get best quality of vulnerability data, you may have to visit VulDB.
Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/28/2020
The vulnerability identified in CVE-2018-13671 represents a critical integer overflow flaw within the mintToken function of the DinsteinCoin Ethereum token smart contract implementation. This vulnerability stems from improper input validation and arithmetic handling within the smart contract code, creating a scenario where the contract owner can manipulate user balances arbitrarily. The issue manifests when the mintToken function processes token minting operations without adequate overflow checks, allowing malicious or privileged actors to exploit the contract's arithmetic operations to achieve unintended balance states.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through the manipulation of integer arithmetic operations within the smart contract's mintToken function. When the contract attempts to increment user balances or perform token minting operations, the lack of proper overflow protection enables attackers to craft specific inputs that cause integer overflows. This results in the balance calculation wrapping around to unexpected values, effectively allowing the contract owner to set any user's balance to an arbitrary value. The vulnerability directly maps to CWE-190, which describes integer overflow and underflow conditions, and specifically relates to CWE-682, which covers incorrect arithmetic operations within software systems.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple balance manipulation, creating significant security implications for the DinsteinCoin ecosystem. An attacker with access to the contract owner privileges can fundamentally alter the token distribution and potentially create unlimited tokens or manipulate user holdings to gain unfair advantages. This vulnerability undermines the core principles of blockchain tokenomics and smart contract security, as it allows for unauthorized balance manipulation that could lead to financial loss for legitimate token holders. The impact is particularly severe because it affects the fundamental trust model of the token system, where users expect their balances to be accurately maintained and protected from unauthorized modification.
Mitigation strategies for this vulnerability require immediate implementation of proper integer overflow protection mechanisms within the smart contract code. The most effective approach involves implementing comprehensive input validation and using safe arithmetic operations that check for overflow conditions before performing calculations. Smart contract developers should utilize established libraries and frameworks that provide built-in overflow protection, such as OpenZeppelin's SafeMath library, which prevents arithmetic operations from causing overflow conditions. Additionally, thorough code auditing and formal verification processes should be implemented to identify similar vulnerabilities across the entire smart contract implementation. The remediation process must include comprehensive testing of edge cases and boundary conditions to ensure that all arithmetic operations within the contract are protected against overflow scenarios. Organizations should also consider implementing access control mechanisms that limit the privileges of contract owners and establish proper governance procedures to prevent unauthorized exploitation of such vulnerabilities. This vulnerability serves as a critical reminder of the importance of rigorous security practices in blockchain development, particularly when dealing with financial systems where integer arithmetic errors can have severe financial consequences.