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by unluckier 3966 days ago
It's pretty simple if the OS you're using allows you to install a trusted root CA certificate.
2 comments

Except apps like this should probably not be using the OS CA store, and instead just pin their own CA cert. Doesn't seem to be the case here but in general I think pinning is getting more adoption, isn't it?
Not really, heck, on Android and iOS around 40% of banking apps don't even check the certificate at all.

Most people, even most developers seem to be pretty clueless with this stuff.

The paper won't be available to everyone until Wednesday at [1], but:

> Altogether, of the 639,283 [Android] apps in our data-set, 45 implement pinning.

[1]: https://www.usenix.org/conference/usenixsecurity15/technical...

> on Android and iOS around 40% of banking apps don't even check the certificate at all.

Please name and shame, this sounds pretty surprising!

List of Android SSL MITM vulnerable apps: https://samsclass.info/128/proj/popular-ssl.htm

Highly recommend any material on the main site as well. One of the few legit infosec professors I have ever interacted with.

At least for Android: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1t5GXwjw82SyunALVJb2w...

There are several banking-related apps listed here.

Heard that on an old security now episode, https://www.grc.com/sn/sn-443-notes.pdf is the best I have unfortunately, there's mention of it near the bottom there.
> just pin their own CA cert.

No. No application or OS should impose it's own CA on an end user without choice. I get the importance of encrypted traffic flowing over the internet, but I also have concerns about traffic leaving my own network. Neither at my home or my business do I want an encrypted stream of traffic flowing out of my network without my being able to inspect the contents and know who the recipient is.

And it would break at any corporation that does a MITM on their own employees to monitor SSL traffic.
What do you mean "apps like this" ? The OP is talking about the Windows 10 OS, which uses the OS CA store.
The app in question is the search UI/Cortana. It has no need to use the OS store and could easily pin to MS's CA.
Doesn't work with cert pinning.