CVE-2020-11922 in Colors A60
Summary
by MITRE • 04/02/2021
An issue was discovered in WiZ Colors A60 1.14.0. The device sends unnecessary information to the cloud controller server. Although this information is sent encrypted and has low risk in isolation, it decreases the privacy of the end user. The information sent includes the local IP address being used and the SSID of the Wi-Fi network the device is connected to. (Various resources such as wigle.net can be use for mapping of SSIDs to physical locations.)
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 07/30/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2020-11922 affects WiZ Colors A60 smart lighting devices running firmware version 1.14.0, representing a privacy exposure that stems from improper data handling practices within the device's communication architecture. This issue manifests as the device transmitting additional metadata to its cloud controller server beyond what is necessary for core functionality, creating an information leakage scenario that compromises user privacy even when encryption is properly implemented. The device architecture demonstrates a lack of minimal data collection principles, where the smart lighting device unnecessarily broadcasts identifying information that could be aggregated to form comprehensive user location profiles and behavioral patterns.
The technical flaw lies in the device's network communication protocol implementation, where the firmware fails to distinguish between essential operational data and ancillary information that could be used for tracking purposes. Specifically, the device transmits the local ip address and the ssid of the connected wifi network to the cloud controller, creating a data fingerprint that can be exploited for location mapping and user identification. This represents a violation of the principle of least privilege in data collection, where the device collects more information than required for its primary function of controlling lighting. The vulnerability demonstrates a clear weakness in the device's secure coding practices and data minimization approach, as the transmitted information is not adequately filtered or sanitized before transmission.
The operational impact of this vulnerability extends beyond simple privacy concerns to encompass potential location tracking capabilities that could be exploited by malicious actors or third parties with access to publicly available databases such as wigle.net. The combination of local ip address and ssid information creates a unique identifier that, when aggregated with other publicly available data sources, can be used to map user locations with significant accuracy. This exposure affects end users who may not be aware that their network information is being transmitted to cloud servers, creating a stealthy privacy breach that occurs without explicit user consent or knowledge. The low-risk isolation assessment of the individual data elements becomes problematic when considering the cumulative effect of multiple devices transmitting similar information, potentially enabling large-scale tracking of user movements and habits.
Mitigation strategies should focus on implementing proper data filtering mechanisms within the device firmware to ensure that only essential operational data is transmitted to cloud servers. Network administrators and users should consider implementing network segmentation and firewall rules to limit the device's ability to communicate with external servers, while also ensuring that the device firmware is updated to versions that address this specific information leakage issue. The vulnerability highlights the importance of secure by design principles and the need for comprehensive privacy impact assessments during the development lifecycle of IoT devices. Organizations should adopt the principle of data minimization as outlined in various cybersecurity frameworks and ensure that devices collect only the data necessary for their core functions while implementing proper data governance policies. This vulnerability also underscores the need for regular security audits of IoT device communications and the implementation of network monitoring solutions that can detect and alert on unusual data transmission patterns that may indicate privacy violations.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-200 (Information Exposure) and CWE-312 (Cleartext Storage of Sensitive Information) categories, representing a privacy exposure that occurs through unnecessary data transmission rather than direct data breaches. From an ATT&CK framework perspective, this vulnerability maps to T1041 (Exfiltration Over C2 Channel) and T1566 (Phishing) as it enables potential tracking of user locations and could be leveraged in social engineering attacks. The device's behavior also violates privacy principles established in NIST SP 800-53 and ISO/IEC 27001 standards, which emphasize the importance of protecting personal information and implementing appropriate data handling controls to prevent unauthorized disclosure of sensitive user data.