CWE-267 Base Incompleto

Privilege Defined With Unsafe Actions

This vulnerability occurs when a system grants a user, role, or process a specific permission that can be misused to perform dangerous, unintended actions. The permission itself is correctly…

Definición

What is CWE-267?

This vulnerability occurs when a system grants a user, role, or process a specific permission that can be misused to perform dangerous, unintended actions. The permission itself is correctly assigned, but its scope is too broad or allows for unsafe operations.
At its core, this weakness is about over-privilege. A system might correctly identify that a user needs to edit files, but if the associated 'edit' permission also allows them to overwrite critical system files or execute code, the privilege is dangerously defined. Developers often make this mistake by using coarse-grained permissions that bundle safe and unsafe actions together, or by not considering all the destructive ways a seemingly benign right could be exploited. To prevent this, implement the principle of least privilege by defining permissions based on specific, safe actions rather than broad capabilities. Audit your authorization logic to ensure each granted right cannot be chained or used in an unexpected context to cause harm. Security testing should explicitly check if assigned privileges can be leveraged to bypass security controls or perform actions outside the user's intended role.
Impacto en el mundo real

Real-world CVEs caused by CWE-267

  • CVE-2002-1981

    Roles have access to dangerous procedures (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2002-1671

    Untrusted object/method gets access to clipboard (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2004-2204

    Gain privileges using functions/tags that should be restricted (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2000-0315

    Traceroute program allows unprivileged users to modify source address of packet (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2004-0380

    Bypass domain restrictions using a particular file that references unsafe URI schemes (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2002-1154

    Script does not restrict access to an update command, leading to resultant disk consumption and filled error logs (Accessible entities).

  • CVE-2002-1145

    "public" database user can use stored procedure to modify data controlled by the database owner (Unsafe privileged actions).

  • CVE-2000-0506

    User with capability can prevent setuid program from dropping privileges (Unsafe privileged actions).

Cómo lo explotan los atacantes

Ruta del atacante paso a paso

  1. 1

    Identifica una ruta de código que maneje entrada no confiable sin validación.

  2. 2

    Crea un payload que ejercite el comportamiento inseguro — inyección, traversal, overflow o abuso de lógica.

  3. 3

    Envía el payload a través de una solicitud normal y observa la reacción de la aplicación.

  4. 4

    Itera hasta que la respuesta filtre datos, ejecute código del atacante o escale privilegios.

Ejemplo de código vulnerable

Vulnerable Java

This code intends to allow only Administrators to print debug information about a system.

Vulnerable Java 
public enum Roles {
  	ADMIN,USER,GUEST
  }
  public void printDebugInfo(User requestingUser){
  		if(isAuthenticated(requestingUser)){
  				switch(requestingUser.role){
  						case GUEST:
  							System.out.println("You are not authorized to perform this command");
  							break;
  						default:
  							System.out.println(currentDebugState());
  							break;
  				}
  		}
  		else{
  			System.out.println("You must be logged in to perform this command");
  		}
  }
Ejemplo de código seguro

Secure pseudo

Seguro pseudo 
// Validate, sanitize, or use a safe API before reaching the sink.
function handleRequest(input) {
  const safe = validateAndEscape(input);
  return executeWithGuards(safe);
}
What changed: the unsafe sink is replaced (or the input is validated/escaped) so the same payload no longer triggers the weakness.
Lista de prevención

How to prevent CWE-267

  • Architecture and Design / Operation Very carefully manage the setting, management, and handling of privileges. Explicitly manage trust zones in the software.
  • Architecture and Design / Operation Run your code using the lowest privileges that are required to accomplish the necessary tasks [REF-76]. If possible, create isolated accounts with limited privileges that are only used for a single task. That way, a successful attack will not immediately give the attacker access to the rest of the software or its environment. For example, database applications rarely need to run as the database administrator, especially in day-to-day operations.
Señales de detección

How to detect CWE-267

SAST High

Ejecuta análisis estático (SAST) sobre el código buscando el patrón inseguro en el flujo de datos.

DAST Moderate

Ejecuta pruebas dinámicas de seguridad de aplicaciones (DAST) contra el endpoint en vivo.

Runtime Moderate

Vigila los logs en tiempo de ejecución para detectar trazas de excepción inusuales, entradas malformadas o intentos de bypass de autorización.

Code review Moderate

Revisión de código: marca cualquier código nuevo que maneje entrada desde esta superficie sin usar los helpers validados del framework.

Auto-corrección de Plexicus

Plexicus detecta automáticamente CWE-267 y abre un PR de corrección en menos de 60 segundos.

Codex Remedium escanea cada commit, identifica esta debilidad concreta y entrega un pull request listo para revisión con el parche. Sin tickets. Sin traspasos.

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Preguntas frecuentes

Frequently asked questions

¿Qué es CWE-267?

This vulnerability occurs when a system grants a user, role, or process a specific permission that can be misused to perform dangerous, unintended actions. The permission itself is correctly assigned, but its scope is too broad or allows for unsafe operations.

¿Qué gravedad tiene CWE-267?

MITRE no ha publicado una calificación de probabilidad de explotación para esta debilidad. Trátala como de impacto medio hasta que tu modelo de amenazas demuestre lo contrario.

¿Qué lenguajes o plataformas se ven afectados por CWE-267?

MITRE no ha especificado plataformas afectadas para esta CWE — puede aplicar a la mayoría de los stacks de aplicaciones.

¿Cómo puedo prevenir CWE-267?

Very carefully manage the setting, management, and handling of privileges. Explicitly manage trust zones in the software. Run your code using the lowest privileges that are required to accomplish the necessary tasks [REF-76]. If possible, create isolated accounts with limited privileges that are only used for a single task. That way, a successful attack will not immediately give the attacker access to the rest of the software or its environment. For example, database applications rarely need…

¿Cómo detecta y corrige Plexicus CWE-267?

El motor SAST de Plexicus detecta la firma de flujo de datos para CWE-267 en cada commit. Cuando hay coincidencia, nuestro agente Codex Remedium abre un PR de corrección con el código corregido, las pruebas y un resumen de una línea para el revisor.

¿Dónde puedo aprender más sobre CWE-267?

MITRE publica la definición canónica en https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/267.html. También puedes consultar la documentación de OWASP y NIST para guías relacionadas.

Debilidades relacionadas

Weaknesses related to CWE-267

CWE-269 Padre

Improper Privilege Management

This vulnerability occurs when an application fails to correctly manage user permissions, allowing someone to perform actions or access…

CWE-250 Hermano

Execution with Unnecessary Privileges

This vulnerability occurs when software runs with higher permissions than it actually needs to perform its tasks. This excessive privilege…

CWE-266 Hermano

Incorrect Privilege Assignment

This vulnerability occurs when a system mistakenly grants a user, process, or entity a specific permission or privilege they should not…

CWE-268 Hermano

Privilege Chaining

Privilege chaining occurs when an attacker combines two separate permissions or capabilities, neither of which is dangerous on its own, to…

CWE-270 Hermano

Privilege Context Switching Error

This vulnerability occurs when an application fails to properly manage user permissions while moving between different security contexts,…

CWE-271 Hermano

Privilege Dropping / Lowering Errors

This vulnerability occurs when a system or process fails to reduce its elevated permissions before transferring control of a resource to a…

CWE-274 Hermano

Improper Handling of Insufficient Privileges

This vulnerability occurs when an application fails to properly manage situations where it lacks the necessary permissions to execute an…

CWE-648 Hermano

Incorrect Use of Privileged APIs

This vulnerability occurs when software incorrectly uses functions that require special permissions. Attackers can exploit these mistakes…

CWE-623 Hijo

Unsafe ActiveX Control Marked Safe For Scripting

This vulnerability occurs when an ActiveX control designed for limited use is incorrectly flagged as safe for scripting, allowing web…

Recursos

Further reading

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