CVE-2018-6018 in Tinder
Summary
by MITRE
Fixed sizes of HTTPS responses in Tinder iOS app and Tinder Android app allow an attacker to extract private sensitive information by sniffing network traffic.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 12/27/2019
The vulnerability described in CVE-2018-6018 represents a critical information disclosure flaw affecting the Tinder mobile applications across both iOS and Android platforms. This security weakness stems from the implementation of fixed-size response structures within the HTTPS communication protocol used by the application. Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by performing network traffic analysis and monitoring the communication between the mobile application and Tinder's servers to infer sensitive user data through pattern analysis of response sizes.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability resides in the application's handling of HTTPS responses where the size of data returned to the client remains constant regardless of the actual content being transmitted. This predictable response sizing creates a side-channel attack vector that allows adversaries to deduce information about the data being exchanged. The flaw essentially eliminates the randomness that should typically be present in network responses, making it possible for an attacker to correlate response sizes with specific types of information being transmitted. This vulnerability falls under the category of information leakage through side-channel analysis and can be categorized as a weakness in data protection mechanisms.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple data exposure to encompass significant privacy and security implications for Tinder users. An attacker with access to network traffic can potentially extract personal information including user profiles, match data, location details, and other sensitive attributes that are transmitted through the application's communication channels. The attack requires only passive network monitoring capabilities and does not necessitate active exploitation or privilege escalation, making it particularly dangerous as it can be executed by anyone with access to the network traffic between the user device and Tinder's servers. This vulnerability directly impacts the principle of confidentiality in the CIA triad and represents a failure in secure communication implementation.
The vulnerability aligns with CWE-200, which addresses "Information Exposure," and can be mapped to ATT&CK technique T1041, "Exfiltration Over C2 Channel," through the network traffic analysis approach. Organizations should implement proper response size randomization in their HTTPS implementations to prevent such side-channel attacks. The mitigation strategy involves modifying the application's communication protocol to ensure that response sizes vary appropriately based on content, implementing proper padding mechanisms, and conducting thorough security testing of network communication patterns. Additionally, the use of more sophisticated encryption methods and the implementation of traffic obfuscation techniques can help prevent pattern recognition attacks that rely on response size analysis. Network administrators should also consider implementing network monitoring solutions that can detect unusual patterns in response sizes that might indicate exploitation attempts.