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CWE-911

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CWE-911

Improper Update of Reference Count

Base
Incomplete

Description

The product uses a reference count to manage a resource, but it does not update or incorrectly updates the reference count.

Reference counts can be used when tracking how many objects contain a reference to a particular resource, such as in memory management or garbage collection. When the reference count reaches zero, the resource can be de-allocated or reused because there are no more objects that use it. If the reference count accidentally reaches zero, then the resource might be released too soon, even though it is still in use. If all objects no longer use the resource, but the reference count is not zero, then the resource might not ever be released.

Common Consequences

Scope

Availability

Impact

DoS: Resource Consumption (Memory), DoS: Resource Consumption (Other)

Scope

Availability

Impact

DoS: Crash, Exit, or Restart

CVE-2002-0574

chain: reference count is not decremented, leading to memory leak in OS by sending ICMP packets.

CVE-2004-0114

Reference count for shared memory not decremented when a function fails, potentially allowing unprivileged users to read kernel memory.

CVE-2006-3741

chain: improper reference count tracking leads to file descriptor consumption

CVE-2007-1383

chain: integer overflow in reference counter causes the same variable to be destroyed twice.

CVE-2007-1700

Incorrect reference count calculation leads to improper object destruction and code execution.

CVE-2008-2136

chain: incorrect update of reference count leads to memory leak.

CVE-2008-2785

chain/composite: use of incorrect data type for a reference counter allows an overflow of the counter, leading to a free of memory that is still in use.

CVE-2008-5410

Improper reference counting leads to failure of cryptographic operations.

CVE-2009-1709

chain: improper reference counting in a garbage collection routine leads to use-after-free

CVE-2009-3553

chain: reference count not correctly maintained when client disconnects during a large operation, leading to a use-after-free.

+7 more examples

Applicable Platforms

C
C++
Not Language-Specific

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