Incorrect Ownership Assignment

Incorrect ownership assignment happens when an application or system mistakenly gives administrative or privileged control over a resource—like a file, data object, or system component—to a user, process, or entity that isn't part of the trusted group meant to manage it. This often stems from flawed permission logic, missing validation checks, or misconfigured access control lists (ACLs) during resource creation or user provisioning. As a result, actors outside the intended security sphere can perform unauthorized actions such as modifying, deleting, or exfiltrating the resource. This breaks the core security principle of least privilege and can lead to data breaches, privilege escalation, or system compromise, as untrusted entities gain influence over assets they shouldn't control.