CVE-2024-43399: Mobsf Mobile Security Framework (MobSF) Has Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-4hh3-vj32-gr6j
CVSS 8.0
CWE-23 CWE-22
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2024-43399 is a HIGH (CVSS 8.0) mobile security framework (mobsf) has vulnerability (CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal) affecting Mobsf libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves mobile security framework (mobsf) has a zip slip vulnerability in .a static library files. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 4.0.7.

CVE-2024-43399 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2024-43399
GHSA Identifier GHSA-4hh3-vj32-gr6j
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 8.0
CWE Classification CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal
Affected Product Mobsf
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 8.0

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required Low (PR:L)
User Interaction Required (UI:R)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality High (C:H)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability High (A:H)

How to Fix CVE-2024-43399

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Mobsf dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

mobsf fixed: 4.0.7
pip install mobsf>=4.0.7
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release:

pip show mobsf

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2024-43399, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show mobsf

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Mobsf in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 4.0.7), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show mobsf command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal, where the product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize sequences such as ".." that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory. In Mobsf, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

### Summary Upon reviewing the MobSF source code, I identified a flaw in the Static Libraries analysis section. Specifically, during the extraction of .a extension files, the measure intended to prevent Zip Slip attacks is improperly implemented. Since the implemented measure can be bypassed, the vulnerability allows an attacker to extract files to any desired location within the server running MobSF. ### Details Upon examining lines 183-192 of the `mobsf/StaticAnalyzer/views/common/shared_func.py` file, it is observed that there is a mitigation against Zip Slip attacks implemented as `a.decode('utf-8', 'ignore').replace('../', '').replace('..\\', '')`. However, this measure can be bypassed using sequences like `....//....//....//`. Since the replace operation is not recursive, this sequence is transformed into `../../../` after the replace operation, allowing files to be written to upper directories. <img width="448" alt="image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/fadf4bcc-1a92-4655-b66a-5349278ad9c5"> For the proof of concept, I created an .a archive file that renders MobSF unusable by writing an empty file with the same name over the database located at `/home/mobsf/.MobSF/db.sqlite3`. <img width="300" alt="poc a_1" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/54acf101-3931-401f-9970-a0934265eecb"> I am including the binary used for the POC named `poc.VULN`. To test it, you need to rename this binary to `poc.a`. **Warning:** As soon as you scan this file with MobSF, the database will be deleted, rendering MobSF unusable. PoC Binary File ([poc.VULN](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K2eHYIZ1hUbs-Vi5zhKAKecnd0nDB8lO/view?usp=share_link)) ### PoC https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/3225ccb0-cb00-47a5-8305-37a40ca1ae7f ### Impact When a malicious .a file is scanned with MobSF, a critical vulnerability is present as it allows files to be extracted to any location on the server where MobSF is running. In this POC, I deleted the database, but it is also possible to achieve RCE by overwriting binaries of certain tools or by overwriting the /etc/passwd file.

CVE-2024-43399 Affected Mobsf Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
4.0.7
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
mobsf
PyPI
< 4.0.7
4.0.7

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2024-43399?
CVE-2024-43399 is a security vulnerability in Mobsf involving Mobile Security Framework (MobSF) has a Zip Slip Vulnerability in .a Static Library Files under CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal.
Which Mobsf versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 4.0.7 across affected packages: mobsf.
What version fixes CVE-2024-43399?
Upgrading to 4.0.7 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is mobsf affected?
Yes, mobsf is affected in releases prior to 4.0.7. Upgrade your dependency to 4.0.7 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2024-43399?
CVE-2024-43399 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.0 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2024-43399?
CVE-2024-43399 is classified under CWE-23: Relative Path Traversal (The product uses external input to construct a pathname that should be within a restricted directory, but it does not properly neutralize sequences such as ".." that can resolve to a location that is outside of that directory.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2024-43399?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show mobsf'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-4hh3-vj32-gr6j",
  "modified" : "2024-08-19T17:29:52Z",
  "published" : "2024-08-19T17:29:52Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2024-43399" ],
  "summary" : "Mobile Security Framework (MobSF) has a Zip Slip Vulnerability in .a Static Library Files",
  "details" : "### Summary\nUpon reviewing the MobSF source code, I identified a flaw in the Static Libraries analysis section. Specifically, during the extraction of .a extension files, the measure intended to prevent Zip Slip attacks is improperly implemented.\n\nSince the implemented measure can be bypassed, the vulnerability allows an attacker to extract files to any desired location within the server running MobSF.\n\n### Details\n\nUpon examining lines 183-192 of the `mobsf/StaticAnalyzer/views/common/shared_func.py` file, it is observed that there is a mitigation against Zip Slip attacks implemented as `a.decode('utf-8', 'ignore').replace('../', '').replace('..\\\\', '')`. However, this measure can be bypassed using sequences like `....//....//....//`. Since the replace operation is not recursive, this sequence is transformed into `../../../` after the replace operation, allowing files to be written to upper directories.\n\n<img width=\"448\" alt=\"image\" src=\"https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/fadf4bcc-1a92-4655-b66a-5349278ad9c5\">\n\n\nFor the proof of concept, I created an .a archive file that renders MobSF unusable by writing an empty file with the same name over the database located at `/home/mobsf/.MobSF/db.sqlite3`.\n\n<img width=\"300\" alt=\"poc a_1\" src=\"https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/54acf101-3931-401f-9970-a0934265eecb\">\n\n\nI am including the binary used for the POC named `poc.VULN`. To test it, you need to rename this binary to `poc.a`.\n\n **Warning:** As soon as you scan this file with MobSF, the database will be deleted, rendering MobSF unusable.\n\nPoC Binary File ([poc.VULN](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K2eHYIZ1hUbs-Vi5zhKAKecnd0nDB8lO/view?usp=share_link))\n\n### PoC\n\n\nhttps://github.com/user-attachments/assets/3225ccb0-cb00-47a5-8305-37a40ca1ae7f\n\n\n\n### Impact\n\nWhen a malicious .a file is scanned with MobSF, a critical vulnerability is present as it allows files to be extracted to any location on the server where MobSF is running. In this POC, I deleted the database, but it is also possible to achieve RCE by overwriting binaries of certain tools or by overwriting the /etc/passwd file.\n",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:L/UI:P/VC:H/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "mobsf"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "4.0.7"
      } ]
    } ],
    "database_specific" : {
      "last_known_affected_version_range" : "<= 4.0.6"
    }
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/MobSF/Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF/security/advisories/GHSA-4hh3-vj32-gr6j"
  }, {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2024-43399"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/MobSF/Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF/commit/cc625fe8430f3437a473e82aa2966d100a4dc883"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/MobSF/Mobile-Security-Framework-MobSF"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-22", "CWE-23" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2024-08-19T17:29:52Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2024-08-19T15:15:09Z"
  }
}