1040
Nature Type ID Name Page
PeerOf 426 Untrusted Search Path 1028
Relevant to the view "Weaknesses for Simplified Mapping of Published
Vulnerabilities" (CWE-1003)
Nature Type ID Name Page
ChildOf 668 Exposure of Resource to Wrong Sphere 1469
Relevant to the view "Software Development" (CWE-699)
Nature Type ID Name Page
MemberOf 1219 File Handling Issues 2480
Applicable Platforms
Language : Not Language-Specific (Prevalence = Undetermined)
Operating_System : Windows NT (Prevalence = Sometimes)
Operating_System : macOS (Prevalence = Rarely)
Common Consequences
Scope Impact Likelihood
Confidentiality
Integrity
Availability
Execute Unauthorized Code or Commands
Potential Mitigations
Phase: Implementation
Properly quote the full search path before executing a program on the system.
Phase: Implementation
Strategy = Input Validation
Assume all input is malicious. Use an "accept known good" input validation strategy, i.e., use
a list of acceptable inputs that strictly conform to specifications. Reject any input that does not
strictly conform to specifications, or transform it into something that does. When performing
input validation, consider all potentially relevant properties, including length, type of input, the
full range of acceptable values, missing or extra inputs, syntax, consistency across related
fields, and conformance to business rules. As an example of business rule logic, "boat" may be
syntactically valid because it only contains alphanumeric characters, but it is not valid if the input
is only expected to contain colors such as "red" or "blue." Do not rely exclusively on looking for
malicious or malformed inputs. This is likely to miss at least one undesirable input, especially if
the code's environment changes. This can give attackers enough room to bypass the intended
validation. However, denylists can be useful for detecting potential attacks or determining which
inputs are so malformed that they should be rejected outright.
Phase: Implementation
Strategy = Input Validation
Inputs should be decoded and canonicalized to the application's current internal representation
before being validated (CWE-180). Make sure that the application does not decode the same
input twice (CWE-174). Such errors could be used to bypass allowlist validation schemes by
introducing dangerous inputs after they have been checked.
Demonstrative Examples
Example 1:
The following example demonstrates the weakness.
CWE Version 4.14
CWE-428: Unquoted Search Path or Element
CWE-428: Unquoted Search Path or Element