static CURLcode set_login(struct connectdata *conn)
{
  CURLcode result = CURLE_OK;
  const char *setuser = CURL_DEFAULT_USER;
  const char *setpasswd = CURL_DEFAULT_PASSWORD;

  /* If our protocol needs a password and we have none, use the defaults */
  if((conn->handler->flags & PROTOPT_NEEDSPWD) && !conn->bits.user_passwd)
    ;
  else {
    setuser = "";
    setpasswd = "";
  }
  /* Store the default user */
  if(!conn->user) {
    conn->user = strdup(setuser);
    if(!conn->user)
      return CURLE_OUT_OF_MEMORY;
  }

  /* Store the default password */
  if(!conn->passwd) {
    conn->passwd = strdup(setpasswd);
    if(!conn->passwd)
      result = CURLE_OUT_OF_MEMORY;
  }

  /* if there's a user without password, consider password blank */
  if(conn->user && !conn->passwd) {
    conn->passwd = strdup("");
    if(!conn->passwd)
      result = CURLE_OUT_OF_MEMORY;
  }

  return result;
}

The product reuses or references memory after it has been freed. At some point afterward, the memory may be allocated again and saved in another pointer, while the original pointer references a location somewhere within the new allocation. Any operations using the original pointer are no longer valid because the memory belongs to the code that operates on the new pointer.