Vulnerabilities in Xiaomi Phones could have led Hackers to Forge Payments
By MYBRANDBOOK
Check Point Research (CPR) identified vulnerabilities in Xiaomi’s mobile payment mechanism. Left unpatched, an attacker could steal private keys used to sign Wechat Pay control and payment packages. Worst case, an unprivileged Android app could have created and signed a fake payment package.
Vulnerabilities were found in Xiaomi's Trusted Environment
Over 1 billion users could have been affected
Xiaomi acknowledged and fixed the security flaws
Check Point Research (CPR) identified vulnerabilities in Xiaomi’s mobile payment mechanism. Left unpatched, an attacker could steal private keys used to sign Wechat Pay control and payment packages. In the worst case, an unprivileged Android app could have created and signed a fake payment package.
Specifically, the vulnerabilities were found in Xiaomi's Trusted Environment, which is responsible for storing and managing sensitive information such as keys and passwords. The devices studied by CPR were powered by MediaTek chips.
Two Attack Paths
CPR discovered two ways to attack the trusted code:
From an unprivileged Android app: The user installs a malicious application and launches it. The app extracts the keys and sends a fake payment packet to steal the money.
If the attacker has the target devices in their hands: The attacker rootes the device, then downgrades the trust environment, and then runs the code to create a fake payment package without an application.
Responsible Disclosure
CPR responsibly disclosed its findings to Xiaomi. Xiaomi acknowledged and issued fixes.
Quote: Slava Makkaveev, Security Researcher at Check Point:
“We discovered a set of vulnerabilities that could allow forging of payment packages or disabling the payment system directly, from an unprivileged Android application. We were able to hack into WeChat Pay and implemented a fully worked proof of concept. Our study marks the first time Xiaomi's trusted applications are being reviewed for security issues.
We immediately disclosed our findings to Xiaomi, who worked swiftly to issue a fix. Our message to the public is to constantly make sure your phones are updated to the latest version provided by the manufacturer. If even mobile payments are not secure, then what is?”
Legal Battle Over IT Act Intensifies Amid Musk’s India Plans
The outcome of the legal dispute between X Corp and the Indian government c...
Wipro inks 10-year deal with Phoenix Group's ReAssure UK worth
The agreement, executed through Wipro and its 100% subsidiary,...
Centre announces that DPDP Rules nearing Finalisation by April
The government seeks to refine the rules for robust data protection, ensuri...
Home Ministry cracks down on PoS agents in digital arrest scam
Digital arrest scams are a growing cybercrime where victims are coerced or ...
ICONS OF INDIA : RISHAD PREMJI
Rishad Premji is Executive Chairman of Wipro Limited, a $11.3 billion ...
Icons Of India : Arundhati Bhattacharya
Arundhati Bhattacharya serves as the Chairperson and CEO of Salesforce...
Icons Of India : Anil Kumar Lahoti
Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TR...
DRDO - Defence Research and Development Organisation
DRDO responsible for the development of technology for use by the mili...
NPCI - National Payments Corporation of India
NPCI is an umbrella organization for operating retail payments and set...
TCIL - Telecommunications Consultants India Limited
TCIL is a government-owned engineering and consultancy company...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Rajiv Ramaswami, President & CEO, Nutanix Technologies
Rajiv Ramaswami, President and CEO of Nutanix, brings over 30 years of...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Anirudh Devgan , President, Cadence Design
Anirudh Devgan, the Global President and CEO of Cadence Design Systems...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Soni Jiandani, Co-Founder- Pensando Systems
Soni Jiandani, Co-Founder of Pensando Systems, is a tech visionary ren...