CVE-2018-7295 in Final Fantasy XIV
Summary
by MITRE
ffxivlauncher.exe in Square Enix Final Fantasy XIV 4.21 and 4.25 on Windows is affected by Improper Enforcement of Message Integrity During Transmission in a Communication Channel, allowing a man-in-the-middle attacker to steal user credentials because a session retrieves global.js via http before proceeding to use https. This is fixed in Patch 4.3.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 02/08/2020
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2018-7295 affects the ffxivlauncher.exe component of Square Enix's Final Fantasy XIV version 4.21 and 4.25 on Windows platforms. This represents a critical security flaw that undermines the integrity of communication channels during the authentication process. The vulnerability specifically manifests as an improper enforcement of message integrity during transmission, creating a window of opportunity for malicious actors to intercept and manipulate data flows. The flaw occurs within the launcher's session initialization process where the application retrieves the global.js configuration file using the unencrypted http protocol before transitioning to secure https communication channels. This sequence creates a man-in-the-middle attack vector that allows adversaries to intercept sensitive user credentials during the authentication handshake.
The technical implementation of this vulnerability stems from the launcher's failure to maintain consistent security protocols throughout the entire session establishment phase. According to CWE-319 standards, this represents a weakness in cryptographic communication where the same session uses different security levels for different components of the communication process. The attacker can exploit this inconsistency by positioning themselves between the user's system and the game servers, intercepting the http request for global.js and potentially modifying its contents to redirect the user to malicious infrastructure. This attack pattern aligns with ATT&CK technique T1566 which describes social engineering attacks that manipulate communication channels to gain unauthorized access. The vulnerability demonstrates a classic case of protocol downgrade attacks where the initial insecure communication channel compromises the entire authentication process.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple credential theft to potentially enable broader compromise of user accounts within the Final Fantasy XIV ecosystem. When users authenticate through the vulnerable launcher, their credentials become exposed to interception during the brief window between the insecure http request and the subsequent secure https connection. This exposure creates a significant risk for account takeover attacks, where attackers can capture login information and subsequently access user characters, inventory items, and personal data stored within the game environment. The vulnerability affects all users who authenticate through the affected launcher versions, making it particularly dangerous as it operates at the network level and requires no specialized tools or knowledge of the game's internal systems to exploit.
Security mitigations for this vulnerability involve implementing consistent and secure communication protocols throughout the entire session establishment process. The patch released in version 4.3 addresses this issue by ensuring that all communication channels maintain the same security level throughout the authentication process, eliminating the window of opportunity for man-in-the-middle attacks. Organizations should implement network monitoring to detect anomalous traffic patterns that might indicate exploitation attempts, particularly around the time of authentication. The fix aligns with security best practices outlined in NIST SP 800-57 which emphasizes maintaining consistent cryptographic standards throughout all phases of communication. Additionally, users should be educated about the importance of verifying network connections and avoiding public networks when authenticating with sensitive applications. The vulnerability serves as a reminder of the critical importance of maintaining consistent security policies across all communication channels within software applications, as demonstrated by the ATT&CK framework's emphasis on maintaining secure communication channels throughout the attack lifecycle.