CWE-617 Base Borrador

Reachable Assertion

A reachable assertion occurs when an attacker can trigger an assert() statement or similar debugging check, causing the application to crash or behave in a more disruptive way than intended. This…

Definición

What is CWE-617?

A reachable assertion occurs when an attacker can trigger an assert() statement or similar debugging check, causing the application to crash or behave in a more disruptive way than intended. This turns a helpful development tool into a denial-of-service vulnerability.
Assertions are meant to catch logic errors during development, but if left in production code, they can be weaponized. An attacker who discovers the trigger condition can force the application to exit abruptly, disrupting service for all users. For instance, a single triggered assert() in a multi-connection server could terminate every active connection, causing widespread outage. While SAST tools can flag the presence of assertions, managing this risk at scale across a large codebase is challenging. An ASPM platform like Plexicus helps by continuously tracking these flaws in production, and its AI can recommend specific fixes—such as replacing the assert with proper error handling—saving significant manual remediation time.
Impacto en el mundo real

Real-world CVEs caused by CWE-617

  • CVE-2023-49286

    Chain: function in web caching proxy does not correctly check a return value (CWE-253) leading to a reachable assertion (CWE-617)

  • CVE-2006-6767

    FTP server allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (daemon abort) via crafted commands which trigger an assertion failure.

  • CVE-2006-6811

    Chat client allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via a long message string when connecting to a server, which causes an assertion failure.

  • CVE-2006-5779

    Product allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (daemon crash) via LDAP BIND requests with long authcid names, which triggers an assertion failure.

  • CVE-2006-4095

    Product allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (crash) via certain queries, which cause an assertion failure.

  • CVE-2006-4574

    Chain: security monitoring product has an off-by-one error that leads to unexpected length values, triggering an assertion.

  • CVE-2004-0270

    Anti-virus product has assert error when line length is non-numeric.

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

In the excerpt below, an AssertionError (an unchecked exception) is thrown if the user hasn't entered an email address in an HTML form.

Vulnerable Java 
String email = request.getParameter("email_address");
  assert email != null;
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-617

  • Implementation Make sensitive open/close operation non reachable by directly user-controlled data (e.g. open/close resources)
  • Implementation Perform input validation on user data.
Señales de detección

How to detect CWE-617

Automated Static Analysis High

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.)

Auto-corrección de Plexicus

Plexicus detecta automáticamente CWE-617 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.

Solicitar demo Probar Plexicus gratis
Preguntas frecuentes

Frequently asked questions

¿Qué es CWE-617?

A reachable assertion occurs when an attacker can trigger an assert() statement or similar debugging check, causing the application to crash or behave in a more disruptive way than intended. This turns a helpful development tool into a denial-of-service vulnerability.

¿Qué gravedad tiene CWE-617?

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-617?

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

¿Cómo puedo prevenir CWE-617?

Make sensitive open/close operation non reachable by directly user-controlled data (e.g. open/close resources) Perform input validation on user data.

¿Cómo detecta y corrige Plexicus CWE-617?

El motor SAST de Plexicus detecta la firma de flujo de datos para CWE-617 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-617?

MITRE publica la definición canónica en https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/617.html. También puedes consultar la documentación de OWASP y NIST para guías relacionadas.

Debilidades relacionadas

Weaknesses related to CWE-617

CWE-670 Padre

Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation

This weakness occurs when a section of code is structured in a way that always executes incorrectly, regardless of input or conditions.…

CWE-480 Hermano

Use of Incorrect Operator

This vulnerability occurs when a developer mistakenly uses the wrong operator in their code, leading to unintended and potentially…

CWE-483 Hermano

Incorrect Block Delimitation

This vulnerability occurs when a developer fails to use explicit braces or delimiters to group multiple statements within a block, leading…

CWE-484 Hermano

Omitted Break Statement in Switch

This vulnerability occurs when a developer forgets to include a 'break' statement inside a switch-case block. Without it, the code…

CWE-698 Hermano

Execution After Redirect (EAR)

Execution After Redirect (EAR) occurs when a web application sends a redirect response to a user's browser but continues to run…

CWE-783 Hermano

Operator Precedence Logic Error

This vulnerability occurs when a developer writes a conditional expression where the intended logic is broken due to misunderstanding or…

Recursos

Further reading

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