Use of Potentially Dangerous Function
Weakness ID: 676 (Weakness Base)Status: Draft
+ Description

Description Summary

The program invokes a potentially dangerous function that could introduce a vulnerability if it is used incorrectly, but the function can also be used safely.
+ Time of Introduction
  • Architecture and Design
  • Implementation
+ Applicable Platforms

Languages

C

C++

+ Likelihood of Exploit

High

+ Demonstrative Examples

Example 1

The following code attempts to create a local copy of a buffer to perform some manipulations to the data.

(Bad Code)
Example Language: C 
void manipulate_string(char* string){
char buf[24];
strcpy(buf, string);
...
}

However, the programmer does not ensure that the size of the data pointed to by string will fit in the local buffer and blindly copies the data with the potentially dangerous strcpy() function. This may result in a buffer overflow condition if an attacker can influence the contents of the string parameter.

+ Potential Mitigations

Use static analysis tools to spot use/misuse of the dangerous function.

+ Weakness Ordinalities
OrdinalityDescription
Primary
(where the weakness exists independent of other weaknesses)
+ Relationships
NatureTypeIDNameView(s) this relationship pertains toView(s)
ChildOfWeakness ClassWeakness Class398Indicator of Poor Code Quality
Development Concepts (primary)699
Research Concepts (primary)1000
ChildOfCategoryCategory738CERT C Secure Coding Section 04 - Integers (INT)
Weaknesses Addressed by the CERT C Secure Coding Standard (primary)734
ChildOfCategoryCategory743CERT C Secure Coding Section 09 - Input Output (FIO)
Weaknesses Addressed by the CERT C Secure Coding Standard734
ChildOfCategoryCategory746CERT C Secure Coding Section 12 - Error Handling (ERR)
Weaknesses Addressed by the CERT C Secure Coding Standard734
ParentOfWeakness VariantWeakness Variant785Use of Path Manipulation Function without Maximum-sized Buffer
Research Concepts (primary)1000
+ Relationship Notes

This weakness is different than CWE-242 (Use of Inherently Dangerous Function). CWE-242 covers functions with such significant security problems that they can never be guaranteed to be safe. Some functions, if used properly, do not directly pose a security risk, but can introduce a weakness if not called correctly. These are regarded as potentially dangerous. A well-known example is the strcpy() function. When provided with a destination buffer that is larger than its source, strcpy() will not overflow. However, it is so often misused that some developers prohibit strcpy() entirely.

+ Causal Nature

Explicit

+ Taxonomy Mappings
Mapped Taxonomy NameNode IDFitMapped Node Name
7 Pernicious KingdomsDangerous Functions
CERT C Secure CodingERR07-CPrefer functions that support error checking over equivalent functions that don't
CERT C Secure CodingFIO01-CBe careful using functions that use file names for identification
CERT C Secure CodingINT06-CUse strtol() or a related function to convert a string token to an integer
+ References
[REF-11] M. Howard and D. LeBlanc. "Writing Secure Code". Chapter 5, "Safe String Handling" Page 156, 160. 2nd Edition. Microsoft. 2002.
+ Content History
Submissions
Submission DateSubmitterOrganizationSource
7 Pernicious KingdomsExternally Mined
Modifications
Modification DateModifierOrganizationSource
2008-07-01Sean EidemillerCigitalExternal
added/updated demonstrative examples
2008-07-01Eric DalciCigitalExternal
updated Potential Mitigations, Time of Introduction
2008-09-08CWE Content TeamMITREInternal
updated Applicable Platforms, Relationships, Other Notes, Taxonomy Mappings, Weakness Ordinalities
2008-11-24CWE Content TeamMITREInternal
updated Relationships, Taxonomy Mappings
2009-07-27CWE Content TeamMITREInternal
updated Relationships
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