CVE-2026-102670 in Joyland
Summary
by MITRE • 10/01/2026
Joyland AI app explicitly permits cleartext HTTP traffic on Android 9+ where the default is to block it.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/01/2026
The Joyland AI application exhibits a significant security misconfiguration regarding network communication protocols, specifically by allowing unencrypted Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) traffic on devices running Android version nine and higher. This behavior directly contradicts the platform's native security defaults, which are designed to block cleartext HTTP connections to protect user data from interception during transit. By explicitly permitting this type of traffic, the application undermines the fundamental principle of confidentiality in network communications, exposing sensitive information such as authentication credentials, personal messages, and potentially financial details to potential eavesdropping attacks.
From a technical perspective, Android 9 introduced strict enforcement mechanisms for cleartext traffic through its Network Security Configuration feature. By default, applications are prohibited from making HTTP requests unless they explicitly declare an exception in their configuration file or manifest. The presence of this explicit permission indicates that the developers have chosen to disable these protections, likely due to legacy backend dependencies or a lack of awareness regarding modern security best practices. This misconfiguration creates a vulnerability where any attacker positioned within the same network segment, such as on public Wi-Fi, can perform man-in-the-middle attacks to capture and analyze unencrypted data packets without needing sophisticated cryptographic breaking techniques.
The operational impact of this vulnerability is severe for end-users who rely on the application for private interactions or sensitive transactions. Since HTTP transmits data in plain text, it is trivially susceptible to sniffing by malicious actors using standard network analysis tools like Wireshark or tcpdump. Furthermore, without integrity checks provided by HTTPS and Transport Layer Security (TLS), attackers can also modify the content of requests and responses in real-time, leading to potential session hijacking, credential theft, or injection of malicious code into the application interface. This lack of encryption erodes user trust and exposes the organization behind the app to regulatory scrutiny under data protection laws such as GDPR or CCPA, which mandate appropriate technical measures for securing personal data during transmission.
This vulnerability aligns with CWE-319, Cleartext Transmission of Sensitive Information, a widely recognized classification in software security that highlights risks associated with transmitting sensitive data without encryption. Additionally, it relates to ATT&CK technique T1048, which covers Exfiltration Over Alternative Protocol, as attackers can leverage the permitted HTTP traffic to exfiltrate stolen data using common web protocols that often bypass traditional network monitoring tools designed to detect more obvious malicious channels. The failure to enforce HTTPS also violates OWASP Mobile Top 10 guidelines, specifically M3: Insecure Communication and M5: Insufficient Cryptography, emphasizing the critical need for robust encryption in mobile applications handling user data.
To mitigate this vulnerability, developers must immediately disable cleartext traffic by removing any explicit allow-lists or configuration overrides that permit HTTP connections. The application should be updated to enforce HTTPS exclusively across all network endpoints, ensuring that TLS is properly configured with strong cipher suites and certificate pinning where appropriate to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks even if the underlying transport layer were compromised. Regular security audits and static code analysis tools should be integrated into the development lifecycle to detect such misconfigurations early. Furthermore, users are advised to exercise caution when using the application on untrusted networks until a patched version is released that adheres to modern encryption standards.