Category: 7PK - API Abuse
This category represents one of the phyla in the Seven Pernicious Kingdoms vulnerability classification. It includes weaknesses that involve the software using an API in a manner contrary to its intended use. According to the authors of the Seven Pernicious Kingdoms, "An API is a contract between a caller and a callee. The most common forms of API misuse occurs when the caller does not honor its end of this contract. For example, if a program does not call chdir() after calling chroot(), it violates the contract that specifies how to change the active root directory in a secure fashion. Another good example of library abuse is expecting the callee to return trustworthy DNS information to the caller. In this case, the caller misuses the callee API by making certain assumptions about its behavior (that the return value can be used for authentication purposes). One can also violate the caller-callee contract from the other side. For example, if a coder subclasses SecureRandom and returns a non-random value, the contract is violated."
| ID | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CWE-242 | Use of Inherently Dangerous Function | This vulnerability occurs when code uses functions that are inherently unsafe and cannot be reliably secured, posing a direct risk to application stability and security. |
| CWE-243 | Creation of chroot Jail Without Changing Working Directory | This vulnerability occurs when a program creates a chroot jail but fails to change its current working directory afterward. Because the process's working directory remains outside the jail, attackers can use relative paths to access files and directories that should be restricted. |
| CWE-244 | Improper Clearing of Heap Memory Before Release ('Heap Inspection') | Using realloc() to resize buffers containing secrets like passwords or keys can leave that sensitive data exposed in memory, as the original data is not securely erased. |
| CWE-245 | J2EE Bad Practices: Direct Management of Connections | This vulnerability occurs when a J2EE application handles database connections directly instead of using the container's built-in connection management system. |
| CWE-246 | J2EE Bad Practices: Direct Use of Sockets | This vulnerability occurs when a J2EE application creates network sockets directly, bypassing the container-managed communication framework provided by the platform. |
| CWE-248 | Uncaught Exception | This vulnerability occurs when a function throws an error or exception, but the calling code does not have a proper handler to catch and manage it. |
| CWE-250 | Execution with Unnecessary Privileges | This vulnerability occurs when software runs with higher permissions than it actually needs to perform its tasks. This excessive privilege creates security risks by opening doors to new attacks or making existing weaknesses more dangerous. |
| CWE-252 | Unchecked Return Value | This vulnerability occurs when a program fails to verify the result of a function or method call, allowing it to continue execution without detecting errors or unexpected conditions. |
| CWE-558 | Use of getlogin() in Multithreaded Application | Using the getlogin() function in a multithreaded application can lead to unreliable or incorrect username results, creating security and logic flaws. |
| CWE-700 | Seven Pernicious Kingdoms | This view (graph) organizes weaknesses using a hierarchical structure that is similar to that used by Seven Pernicious Kingdoms. |
| CWE-251 | Often Misused: String Management | Functions that manipulate strings encourage buffer overflows. |