CWE Database
/

CWE-1384

Back to CWE list

CWE-1384

Improper Handling of Physical or Environmental Conditions

Class
Incomplete

Description

The product does not properly handle unexpected physical or environmental conditions that occur naturally or are artificially induced.

{"xhtml:p":["Hardware products are typically only guaranteed to behave correctly within certain physical limits or environmental conditions. Such products cannot necessarily control the physical or external conditions to which they are subjected. However, the inability to handle such conditions can undermine a product's security. For example, an unexpected physical or environmental condition may cause the flipping of a bit that is used for an authentication decision. This unexpected condition could occur naturally or be induced artificially by an adversary.","Physical or environmental conditions of concern are:"],"xhtml:ul":[{"xhtml:li":[{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"extreme temperature ranges, etc.","xhtml:b":["Atmospheric characteristics: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"electromagnetic interference (EMI), radio frequency interference (RFI), etc.","xhtml:b":["Interference: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"white light, ultra-violet light (UV), lasers, infrared (IR), etc.","xhtml:b":["Assorted light sources: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"under-voltages, over-voltages, under-current, over-current, etc.","xhtml:b":["Power variances: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"glitching, overclocking, clock stretching, etc.","xhtml:b":["Clock variances: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"xhtml:b":["Component aging and degradation"]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"focused ion beams (FIB), etc.","xhtml:b":["Materials manipulation: "]}]},{"xhtml:div":[{"_":"x-rays, cosmic radiation, etc.","xhtml:b":["Exposure to radiation: "]}]}]}]}

Common Consequences

Scope

Confidentiality
Integrity
Availability

Impact

Varies by Context, Unexpected State

Potential Mitigations

Requirements

In requirements, be specific about expectations for how the product will perform when it exceeds physical and environmental boundary conditions, e.g., by shutting down.

Architecture and Design
Implementation

Where possible, include independent components that can detect excess environmental conditions and have the capability to shut down the product.

Architecture and Design
Implementation

Where possible, use shielding or other materials that can increase the adversary's workload and reduce the likelihood of being able to successfully trigger a security-related failure.

CVE-2019-17391

Lack of anti-glitch protections allows an attacker to launch a physical attack to bypass the secure boot and read protected eFuses.

Security Training

Train your team to recognize and prevent security threats with our comprehensive security awareness program.

Start Training

Vulnerability Scanning

Discover vulnerabilities in your applications and infrastructure before attackers do.

Scan Now