CWE-495 Variante Rascunho

Private Data Structure Returned From A Public Method

This vulnerability occurs when a public method directly returns a reference to a private, internal data structure. Because the reference is live, external callers can bypass intended controls and…

Definição

What is CWE-495?

This vulnerability occurs when a public method directly returns a reference to a private, internal data structure. Because the reference is live, external callers can bypass intended controls and modify the data unexpectedly, corrupting the application's state.

This flaw breaks a core principle of encapsulation in object-oriented design. The private data structure—like an array, collection, or object—is meant to be managed solely by the class's own methods. By handing out a direct reference, you allow external code to add, remove, or alter elements without validation, leading to data corruption, security bypasses, or crashes that are difficult to debug. The fix is to return either a copy of the data (defensive copying) or an immutable view, ensuring the internal state remains protected. Identifying every instance of this pattern across a large codebase can be tedious. While SAST tools can flag the risky return statements, Plexicus uses AI to analyze the context and automatically suggest the correct remediation—such as implementing `Collections.unmodifiableList()` in Java or a slice copy in Go—saving developers hours of manual refactoring and ensuring consistent fixes.

Impacto no mundo real

Real-world CVEs caused by CWE-495

Ainda não há referências CVE públicas associadas a este CWE no catálogo da MITRE.

Como os atacantes a exploram

Trajeto do atacante passo a passo

1
Identificar um caminho de código que trata input não confiável sem validação.
2
Criar um payload que explora o comportamento inseguro — injeção, traversal, overflow ou abuso de lógica.
3
Entregar o payload através de um pedido normal e observar a reação da aplicação.
4
Iterar até que a resposta exponha dados, execute código do atacante ou escale privilégios.

Exemplo de código vulnerável

Vulnerable Java

Here, a public method in a Java class returns a reference to a private array. Given that arrays in Java are mutable, any modifications made to the returned reference would be reflected in the original private array.

Vulnerável Java

private String[] colors;
  public String[] getColors() {
  	return colors;
  }

Exemplo 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 verificação de prevenção

How to prevent CWE-495

Implementation Declare the method private.
Implementation Clone the member data and keep an unmodified version of the data private to the object.
Implementation Use public setter methods that govern how a private member can be modified.

Sinais de deteção

How to detect CWE-495

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.)

Correção automática do Plexicus

O Plexicus deteta automaticamente o CWE-495 e abre um PR de correção em menos de 60 segundos.

O Codex Remedium analisa cada commit, identifica esta fraqueza exata e entrega um pull request pronto para revisão com o patch. Sem tickets. Sem transferências.

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Perguntas frequentes

Frequently asked questions

O que é o CWE-495?

Qual a gravidade do CWE-495?

A MITRE não publicou uma classificação de probabilidade de exploração para esta fraqueza. Trate-a como impacto médio até o seu modelo de ameaças provar o contrário.

Que linguagens ou plataformas são afetadas pelo CWE-495?

MITRE lists the following affected platforms: C, C++, Java, C#.

Como posso prevenir o CWE-495?

Declare the method private. Clone the member data and keep an unmodified version of the data private to the object.

Como é que o Plexicus deteta e corrige o CWE-495?

O motor SAST do Plexicus correlaciona a assinatura de fluxo de dados do CWE-495 em cada commit. Quando é encontrada uma correspondência, o nosso agente Codex Remedium abre um PR de correção com o código corrigido, testes e um resumo de uma linha para o revisor.

Onde posso saber mais sobre o CWE-495?

A MITRE publica a definição canónica em https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/495.html. Pode também consultar a documentação da OWASP e do NIST para orientações adjacentes.

Fraquezas relacionadas

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Recursos

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