CVE-2015-1835: Remote exploit of secondary configuration variables in Apache Cordova on Android

CVE-2015-1835: Remote exploit of secondary configuration variables in
               Apache Cordova on Android

Severity:      High

Vendor:        The Apache Software Foundation

Versions Affected:
               Cordova Android up to 4.0.1 (3.7.2 excluded)

Description:

Android applications built with the Cordova framework that don't have
explicit values set in Config.xml can have undefined configuration
variables set by Intent.  This can cause unwanted dialogs appearing
in applications and changes in the application behaviour that can
include the app force-closing.

The latest release of Cordova Android entirely removes the ability
of configuration parameters to be set by intents.  This change is
an API change in the platform, and third-party plugins that use
values set in the config.xml should make sure that they use the
preferences API instead of relying on the Intent bundle, whcih
can be manipulated in this case.

Upgrade path:

Developers who are concerned about this should rebuild their
applications with either Cordova Android 4.0.2, or Cordova 3.7.4
if they are unable to upgrade to Cordova 4.0.2. Developers should
also make sure that variables that they wish to have protected
are specified in their config.xml.

Credit:

This issue was discovered by Seven Shen of Trend Micro Mobile Threat Research Team