654
Description
The product does not drop privileges before passing control of a resource to an actor that does not
have those privileges.
Extended Description
In some contexts, a system executing with elevated permissions will hand off a process/file/etc. to
another process or user. If the privileges of an entity are not reduced, then elevated privileges are
spread throughout a system and possibly to an attacker.
Relationships
The table(s) below shows the weaknesses and high level categories that are related to this
weakness. These relationships are defined as ChildOf, ParentOf, MemberOr and give insight to
similar items that may exist at higher and lower levels of abstraction. In addition, relationships such
as PeerOf and CanAlsoBe are defined to show similar weaknesses that may want to be explored.
Relevant to the view "Research Concepts" (CWE-1000)
Nature Type ID Name Page
ChildOf 269 Improper Privilege Management 646
ParentOf 272 Least Privilege Violation 656
ParentOf 273 Improper Check for Dropped Privileges 660
PeerOf 274 Improper Handling of Insufficient Privileges 663
Relevant to the view "Architectural Concepts" (CWE-1008)
Nature Type ID Name Page
MemberOf 1011 Authorize Actors 2425
Weakness Ordinalities
Primary :
Applicable Platforms
Language : Not Language-Specific (Prevalence = Undetermined)
Likelihood Of Exploit
High
Common Consequences
Scope Impact Likelihood
Access Control Gain Privileges or Assume Identity
If privileges are not dropped, neither are access rights of
the user. Often these rights can be prevented from being
dropped.
Access Control
Non-Repudiation
Gain Privileges or Assume Identity
Hide Activities
If privileges are not dropped, in some cases the
system may record actions as the user which is being
impersonated rather than the impersonator.
Potential Mitigations
Phase: Architecture and Design
Strategy = Separation of Privilege
Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be
unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always
be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area. Ensure that appropriate
compartmentalization is built into the system design, and the compartmentalization allows for and
CWE Version 4.14
CWE-271: Privilege Dropping / Lowering Errors
CWE-271: Privilege Dropping / Lowering Errors