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CWE-785

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CWE-785

Use of Path Manipulation Function without Maximum-sized Buffer

Variant
Incomplete

Description

The product invokes a function for normalizing paths or file names, but it provides an output buffer that is smaller than the maximum possible size, such as PATH_MAX.

Passing an inadequately-sized output buffer to a path manipulation function can result in a buffer overflow. Such functions include realpath(), readlink(), PathAppend(), and others.

Common Consequences

Scope

Integrity
Confidentiality
Availability

Impact

Modify Memory, Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands, DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart

Potential Mitigations

Implementation

Always specify output buffers large enough to handle the maximum-size possible result from path manipulation functions.

Applicable Platforms

C
C++

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