CWE-129Improper Validation of Array Index

Description

Common consequences· 5

• Integrity / Availability — DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart
  Use of an index that is outside the bounds of an array will very likely result in the corruption of relevant memory and perhaps instructions, leading to a crash, if the values are outside of the valid memory area.
• Integrity — Modify Memory
  If the memory corrupted is data, rather than instructions, the system will continue to function with improper values.
• Confidentiality / Integrity — Modify Memory, Read Memory
  Use of an index that is outside the bounds of an array can also trigger out-of-bounds read or write operations, or operations on the wrong objects; i.e., "buffer overflows" are not always the result. This may result in the exposure or modification of sensitive data.
• Integrity / Confidentiality / Availability — Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
  If the memory accessible by the attacker can be effectively controlled, it may be possible to execute arbitrary code, as with a standard buffer overflow and possibly without the use of large inputs if a precise index can be controlled.
• Integrity / Availability / Confidentiality — DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart, Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands, Read Memory, Modify Memory
  A single fault could allow either an overflow (CWE-788) or underflow (CWE-786) of the array index. What happens next will depend on the type of operation being performed out of bounds, but can expose sensitive information, cause a system crash, or possibly lead to arbitrary code execution.

Potential mitigations· 5

• [Architecture and Design]Use an input validation framework such as Struts or the OWASP ESAPI Validation API. Note that using a framework does not automatically address all input validation problems; be mindful of weaknesses that could arise from misusing the framework itself (CWE-1173).
• [Architecture and Design]
• [Requirements]
• [Operation, Build and Compilation]
• [Operation]

Related CAPEC attack patterns· 1

Exploits (incoming)1

(incoming)17

Related by meaning· 6

Nearest entities by semantic similarity across the cs-graph corpus.