Attackers easily fool apps with impostor certificates, putting your passwords and sensitive data at risk.

Even though an application says it’s secure, is it really? Recently, researchers have found many smartphone, computer, and web applications that are vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks which may leave passwords, credit card numbers, and other sensitive data exposed.

Instant messenger apps such as Trillian and AIM as well as the Chase mobile banking app are just some of the many apps which have been identified as vulnerable. The weakness is a result of failure to implement the secure sockets layer and transport layer security protocols which are designed to authenticate the communications between user and server.

Without this authentication protocol, the programs can initiate encrypted communications without validating the digital certificates on the other end. This can lead to the apps trusting imposter certificates used by attackers, giving them a free pass to the device through the app.

So, although these apps may claim to be secure, in reality, the SSL certificate validation is completely broken.

Original article by Dan Goodin.
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