Security readout for executives and security teams
Plain-English summary
This flaw affected the Ascensia Contour NEXT ONE Android app before January 15, 2019. The app contained a fixed encryption key. If an attacker also used another vulnerability to retrieve encrypted cloud data, that key could enable access to and modification of patient medical information.
Executive priority
Treat as high priority where legacy app versions or related cloud exposure may exist, because the potential business impact involves patient medical data confidentiality and integrity. Do not assume active exploitation from the provided evidence.
Technical view
CVE-2018-18978 is a hardcoded encryption key issue in the Ascensia Contour NEXT ONE Android application. The CVE states key extraction is needed to decipher app-to-backend communications, and impact requires chaining with a separate Ascensia cloud data retrieval vulnerability.
Likely exposure
Exposure is most likely limited to users or environments with Ascensia Contour NEXT ONE Android app builds released before January 15, 2019. The supplied CVE data does not provide CPEs, package identifiers, CVSS, or exact vulnerable version numbers.
Exploitation context
The source bundle does not show KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. The described impact is serious but conditional: the hardcoded key must be extracted and combined with another vulnerability that retrieves encrypted Ascensia cloud data.
Researcher notes
Evidence is incomplete: no CVSS, CWE, CPE, exact package identifier, or official patch note is included. The main technical constraint is the required chain with another vulnerability; assess both mobile cryptography and cloud authorization paths.
Mitigation direction
- Identify and retire app builds from before January 15, 2019.
- Update affected Android users to a vendor-supported current release.
- Check Ascensia or vendor guidance for official remediation details.
- Review patient data integrity where old app builds were used.
- Assess related Ascensia cloud access controls and logging.
Validation and detection
- Inventory Android devices for Contour NEXT ONE app versions.
- Confirm no pre-January 15, 2019 builds remain in use.
- Review vendor attestations or assessments for hardcoded encryption keys.
- Check whether the related cloud data retrieval issue was remediated.
- Review logs for unusual patient data access or modification.
Public sources used
Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.
Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context
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ATT&CK lookup starting points
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CVE-2018-18978 mapping review
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Open ATT&CK lookup- Severity
- Unknown
- CVSS
- Not scored
- Known Exploited
- No
- Published
CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5
These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.
CVSS and timeline data
No CVSS vectors or timeline events were available in the normalized CVE source material.
Source materials
- CVE List V5 sourceCVE List V5
- https://depthsecurity.com/blog/medical-exploitation-you-are-now-diabeticCVE reference · x_refsource_MISC
Products and packages named in the record
CWE details
CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.