{"@ID": "468", "@Name": "Incorrect Pointer Scaling", "@Abstraction": "Base", "@Structure": "Simple", "@Status": "Incomplete", "Description": "In C and C++, one may often accidentally refer to the wrong memory due to the semantics of when math operations are implicitly scaled.", "Related_Weaknesses": {"Related_Weakness": {"@Nature": "ChildOf", "@CWE_ID": "682", "@View_ID": "1000", "@Ordinal": "Primary"}}, "Weakness_Ordinalities": {"Weakness_Ordinality": {"Ordinality": "Primary"}}, "Applicable_Platforms": {"Language": [{"@Name": "C", "@Prevalence": "Undetermined"}, {"@Name": "C++", "@Prevalence": "Undetermined"}]}, "Modes_Of_Introduction": {"Introduction": {"Phase": "Implementation", "Note": "Programmers may try to index from a pointer by adding a number of bytes. This is incorrect because C and C++ implicitly scale the operand by the size of the data type."}}, "Likelihood_Of_Exploit": "Medium", "Common_Consequences": {"Consequence": {"Scope": ["Confidentiality", "Integrity"], "Impact": ["Read Memory", "Modify Memory"], "Note": "Incorrect pointer scaling will often result in buffer overflow conditions. Confidentiality can be compromised if the weakness is in the context of a buffer over-read or under-read."}}, "Detection_Methods": {"Detection_Method": {"@Detection_Method_ID": "DM-14", "Method": "Automated Static Analysis", "Description": "Automated static analysis, commonly referred to as Static Application Security Testing (SAST), can find some instances of this weakness by analyzing source code (or binary/compiled code) without having to execute it. Typically, this is done by building a model of data flow and control flow, then searching for potentially-vulnerable patterns that connect \"sources\" (origins of input) with \"sinks\" (destinations where the data interacts with external components, a lower layer such as the OS, etc.)", "Effectiveness": "High"}}, "Potential_Mitigations": {"Mitigation": [{"Phase": "Architecture and Design", "Description": "Use a platform with high-level memory abstractions."}, {"Phase": "Implementation", "Description": "Always use array indexing instead of direct pointer manipulation."}, {"Phase": "Architecture and Design", "Description": "Use technologies for preventing buffer overflows."}]}, "Demonstrative_Examples": {"Demonstrative_Example": {"@Demonstrative_Example_ID": "DX-55", "Intro_Text": "This example attempts to calculate the position of the second byte of a pointer.", "Example_Code": {"@Nature": "Bad", "@Language": "C", "xhtml:div": {"xhtml:br": null, "#text": "int *p = x;char * second_char = (char *)(p + 1);"}}, "Body_Text": "In this example, second_char is intended to point to the second byte of p. But, adding 1 to p actually adds sizeof(int) to p, giving a result that is incorrect (3 bytes off on 32-bit platforms). If the resulting memory address is read, this could potentially be an information leak. If it is a write, it could be a security-critical write to unauthorized memory-- whether or not it is a buffer overflow. Note that the above code may also be wrong in other ways, particularly in a little endian environment."}}, "Taxonomy_Mappings": {"Taxonomy_Mapping": [{"@Taxonomy_Name": "CLASP", "Entry_Name": "Unintentional pointer scaling"}, {"@Taxonomy_Name": "CERT C Secure Coding", "Entry_ID": "ARR39-C", "Entry_Name": "Do not add or subtract a scaled integer to a pointer", "Mapping_Fit": "Exact"}, {"@Taxonomy_Name": "CERT C Secure Coding", "Entry_ID": "EXP08-C", "Entry_Name": "Ensure pointer arithmetic is used correctly"}, {"@Taxonomy_Name": "Software Fault Patterns", "Entry_ID": "SFP1", "Entry_Name": "Glitch in computation"}]}, "References": {"Reference": [{"@External_Reference_ID": "REF-18"}, {"@External_Reference_ID": "REF-62", "@Section": "Chapter 6, \"Pointer Arithmetic\", Page 277"}]}, "Mapping_Notes": {"Usage": "Allowed", "Rationale": "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.", "Comments": "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.", "Reasons": {"Reason": {"@Type": "Acceptable-Use"}}}, "Content_History": {"Submission": {"Submission_Name": "CLASP", "Submission_Date": "2006-07-19", "Submission_Version": "Draft 3", "Submission_ReleaseDate": "2006-07-19"}, "Modification": [{"Modification_Name": "Eric Dalci", "Modification_Organization": "Cigital", "Modification_Date": "2008-07-01", "Modification_Version": "1.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2008-09-09", "Modification_Comment": "updated Time_of_Introduction"}, {"Modification_Organization": "KDM Analytics", "Modification_Date": "2008-08-01", "Modification_Version": "1.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2008-09-09", "Modification_Comment": "added/updated white box definitions"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2008-09-08", "Modification_Version": "1.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2008-09-09", "Modification_Comment": "updated Applicable_Platforms, Common_Consequences, Relationships, Other_Notes, Taxonomy_Mappings"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2008-11-24", "Modification_Version": "1.1", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2008-11-25", "Modification_Comment": "updated Relationships, Taxonomy_Mappings"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2009-05-27", "Modification_Version": "1.4", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2009-05-27", "Modification_Comment": "updated Demonstrative_Examples"}, {"Modification_Name": "KDM Analytics", "Modification_Date": "2009-07-17", "Modification_Version": "1.5", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2009-07-27", "Modification_Comment": "Improved the White_Box_Definition"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2009-07-27", "Modification_Version": "1.5", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2009-07-27", "Modification_Comment": "updated White_Box_Definitions"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2009-10-29", "Modification_Version": "1.6", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2009-10-29", "Modification_Comment": "updated Common_Consequences"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2011-06-01", "Modification_Version": "1.13", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2011-06-01", "Modification_Comment": "updated Common_Consequences"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2011-06-27", "Modification_Version": "2.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2011-06-27", "Modification_Comment": "updated Common_Consequences"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2012-05-11", "Modification_Version": "2.2", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2012-05-15", "Modification_Comment": "updated Demonstrative_Examples, References, Relationships"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2012-10-30", "Modification_Version": "2.3", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2012-10-30", "Modification_Comment": "updated Potential_Mitigations"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2014-06-23", "Modification_Version": "2.7", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2014-06-23", "Modification_Comment": "updated Modes_of_Introduction, Other_Notes"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2014-07-30", "Modification_Version": "2.8", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2014-07-31", "Modification_Comment": "updated Relationships, Taxonomy_Mappings"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2017-11-08", "Modification_Version": "3.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2017-11-08", "Modification_Comment": "updated Relationships, Taxonomy_Mappings, White_Box_Definitions"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2019-01-03", "Modification_Version": "3.2", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2019-01-03", "Modification_Comment": "updated Relationships"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2020-02-24", "Modification_Version": "4.0", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2020-02-24", "Modification_Comment": "updated References"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2023-04-27", "Modification_Version": "4.11", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2023-04-27", "Modification_Comment": "updated Relationships"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2023-06-29", "Modification_Version": "4.12", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2023-06-29", "Modification_Comment": "updated Mapping_Notes"}, {"Modification_Name": "CWE Content Team", "Modification_Organization": "MITRE", "Modification_Date": "2025-12-11", "Modification_Version": "4.19", "Modification_ReleaseDate": "2025-12-11", "Modification_Comment": "updated Detection_Factors, Weakness_Ordinalities"}], "Previous_Entry_Name": {"@Date": "2008-04-11", "#text": "Unintentional Pointer Scaling"}}}