CVE-2021-39081 is a recent vulnerability discovered in the IBM Cognos Analytics Mobile for Android version 1.1.14. This particular vulnerability stems from the usage of weaker than expected cryptographic algorithms in the application, which could potentially allow an attacker to decrypt sensitive information and compromise your data. In this post, we'll delve into what this means for users, how the vulnerability can be exploited, and recommendations on how to address this issue.

Overview of the Vulnerability

IBM Cognos Analytics Mobile for Android version 1.1.14, an application that provides business analytics and reporting tools, has been found to use weak cryptographic algorithms for securing its data. As a result, attackers could potentially decrypt sensitive information such as login credentials, personal information, and other application configuration data, leading to unauthorized access or a potential data breach.

The National Vulnerability Database (NVD) assigned a base score of 5.9 (Medium) for this vulnerability. The vulnerability was assigned the identifier CVE-2021-39081.

How the Vulnerability Could Be Exploited

An attacker could exploit this vulnerability by targeting the weak encryption methods used in the application. Using various cryptographic analysis tools and methods, an attacker can identify the weak algorithms, work out the encryption keys, and decrypt the sensitive information.

For example, a possible weak algorithm implementation in the code may look like this

// Example of a weak algorithm usage in an Android Codebase
public String encrypt(String data) {
    try {
        // Create a KeyGenerator Instance
        KeyGenerator keyGen = KeyGenerator.getInstance("DES");
        // Generate the key
        SecretKey secretKey = keyGen.generateKey();
        // Create a Cipher Instance
        Cipher cipher = Cipher.getInstance("DES");
        // Initialize the cipher
        cipher.init(Cipher.ENCRYPT_MODE, secretKey);
        // Encrypt the data
        byte[] encryptedBytes = cipher.doFinal(data.getBytes("UTF-8"));
        return Base64.encodeToString(encryptedBytes, Base64.DEFAULT);
    } catch (Exception e) {
        // Handle encryption exception
    }
}

In the above example, the DES algorithm is used, which is known to be weak by today's standards. An attacker could exploit this weakness and decrypt the data.

Official Advisory and References

IBM released an official advisory regarding this vulnerability (source: IBM Security Bulletin 6541001). According to the advisory, IBM has fixed the issue in the IBM Cognos Analytics Mobile for Android version 2., and users of the affected version (1.1.14) should upgrade to the latest version as soon as possible.

You can also find more information about the vulnerability in the following resources

- CVE-2021-39081 - https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-39081
- IBM Security Bulletin - https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/node/6541001

Recommendations to Address the Issue

To address this vulnerability and protect your sensitive information, we recommend the following steps:

1. Upgrade the IBM Cognos Analytics Mobile for Android application to version 2. or later, which contains the fix for the issue. The latest version can be found on the Google Play Store.

2. Review your application's codebase to ensure that strong cryptographic algorithms are being used, such as AES, RSA, or elliptic curve cryptography (ECC). In most cases, employing a well-regarded cryptographic library like the BouncyCastle Java library or Android's native KeyStore is recommended.

Keep your software up-to-date and apply security patches as they become available.

By following these recommendations, you can mitigate the risk associated with this vulnerability and better safeguard your sensitive information.

Timeline

Published on: 12/19/2024 01:15:05 UTC