Improper Control of Interaction Frequency
Weakness ID: 799 (Weakness Class)Status: Incomplete
+ Description

Description Summary

The software does not properly limit the number or frequency of interactions that it has with an actor, such as the number of incoming requests.

Extended Description

This can allow the actor to perform actions more frequently than expected. The actor could be a human or an automated process such as a virus or bot. This could be used to cause a denial of service, compromise program logic (such as limiting humans to a single vote), or other consequences. For example, an authentication routine might not limit the number of times an attacker can guess a password. Or, a web site might conduct a poll but only expect humans to vote a maximum of once a day.

+ Alternate Terms
Insufficient anti-automation:

The term "insufficient anti-automation" focuses primarly on non-human actors such as viruses or bots, but the scope of this CWE entry is broader.

Brute force:

Vulnerabilities that can be targeted using brute force attacks are often symptomatic of this weakness.

+ Time of Introduction
  • Architecture and Design
  • Implementation
  • Operation
+ Applicable Platforms

Languages

Language-independent

+ Weakness Ordinalities
OrdinalityDescription
Primary
(where the weakness exists independent of other weaknesses)
+ Relationships
NatureTypeIDNameView(s) this relationship pertains toView(s)
ChildOfCategoryCategory438Behavioral Problems
Development Concepts (primary)699
ChildOfWeakness ClassWeakness Class691Insufficient Control Flow Management
Research Concepts (primary)1000
ChildOfCategoryCategory8082010 Top 25 - Weaknesses On the Cusp
Weaknesses in the 2010 CWE/SANS Top 25 Most Dangerous Programming Errors (primary)800
ParentOfWeakness BaseWeakness Base307Improper Restriction of Excessive Authentication Attempts
Research Concepts1000
+ Taxonomy Mappings
Mapped Taxonomy NameNode IDFitMapped Node Name
WASC21Insufficient Anti-Automation
+ References
Web Application Security Consortium. "Insufficient Anti-automation". <http://projects.webappsec.org/Insufficient+Anti-automation>.
+ Content History
Submissions
Submission DateSubmitterOrganizationSource
2010-01-15MITREInternal CWE Team
New entry to handle anti-automation as identified in WASC.