Détail du CWE-843

CWE-843

Access of Resource Using Incompatible Type ('Type Confusion')
Incomplete
2011-06-01
00h00 +00:00
2023-10-26
00h00 +00:00
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Nom: Access of Resource Using Incompatible Type ('Type Confusion')

The product allocates or initializes a resource such as a pointer, object, or variable using one type, but it later accesses that resource using a type that is incompatible with the original type.

Description du CWE

When the product accesses the resource using an incompatible type, this could trigger logical errors because the resource does not have expected properties. In languages without memory safety, such as C and C++, type confusion can lead to out-of-bounds memory access.

While this weakness is frequently associated with unions when parsing data with many different embedded object types in C, it can be present in any application that can interpret the same variable or memory location in multiple ways.

This weakness is not unique to C and C++. For example, errors in PHP applications can be triggered by providing array parameters when scalars are expected, or vice versa. Languages such as Perl, which perform automatic conversion of a variable of one type when it is accessed as if it were another type, can also contain these issues.

Informations générales

Modes d'introduction

Implementation

Plateformes applicables

Langue

Name: C (Undetermined)
Name: C++ (Undetermined)

Conséquences courantes

Portée Impact Probabilité
Availability
Integrity
Confidentiality
Read Memory, Modify Memory, Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands, DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart

Note: When a memory buffer is accessed using the wrong type, it could read or write memory out of the bounds of the buffer, if the allocated buffer is smaller than the type that the code is attempting to access, leading to a crash and possibly code execution.

Exemples observés

Références Description

CVE-2010-4577

Type confusion in CSS sequence leads to out-of-bounds read.

CVE-2011-0611

Size inconsistency allows code execution, first discovered when it was actively exploited in-the-wild.

CVE-2010-0258

Improperly-parsed file containing records of different types leads to code execution when a memory location is interpreted as a different object than intended.

Notes de cartographie des vulnérabilités

Justification : This CWE entry is at the Base level of abstraction, which is a preferred level of abstraction for mapping to the root causes of vulnerabilities.
Commentaire : Carefully read both the name and description to ensure that this mapping is an appropriate fit. Do not try to 'force' a mapping to a lower-level Base/Variant simply to comply with this preferred level of abstraction.

NotesNotes

This weakness is possible in any type-unsafe programming language.


Type confusion weaknesses have received some attention by applied researchers and major software vendors for C and C++ code. Some publicly-reported vulnerabilities probably have type confusion as a root-cause weakness, but these may be described as "memory corruption" instead.

For other languages, there are very few public reports of type confusion weaknesses. These are probably under-studied. Since many programs rely directly or indirectly on loose typing, a potential "type confusion" behavior might be intentional, possibly requiring more manual analysis.


Références

REF-811

Attacking Interoperability
Mark Dowd, Ryan Smith, David Dewey.
http://hustlelabs.com/stuff/bh2009_dowd_smith_dewey.pdf

REF-62

The Art of Software Security Assessment
Mark Dowd, John McDonald, Justin Schuh.

Soumission

Nom Organisation Date Date de publication Version
CWE Content Team MITRE 2011-05-15 +00:00 2011-06-01 +00:00 1.13

Modifications

Nom Organisation Date Commentaire
CWE Content Team MITRE 2012-05-11 +00:00 updated References
CWE Content Team MITRE 2017-11-08 +00:00 updated Applicable_Platforms, Taxonomy_Mappings
CWE Content Team MITRE 2019-01-03 +00:00 updated Relationships
CWE Content Team MITRE 2019-06-20 +00:00 updated Relationships
CWE Content Team MITRE 2020-02-24 +00:00 updated Relationships
CWE Content Team MITRE 2020-06-25 +00:00 updated Common_Consequences, Relationships
CWE Content Team MITRE 2022-04-28 +00:00 updated Research_Gaps
CWE Content Team MITRE 2023-01-31 +00:00 updated Description
CWE Content Team MITRE 2023-04-27 +00:00 updated References, Relationships
CWE Content Team MITRE 2023-06-29 +00:00 updated Mapping_Notes
CWE Content Team MITRE 2023-10-26 +00:00 updated Demonstrative_Examples