CWE-481
Weakness AllowedAssigning instead of Comparing
Abstraction: Variant · Status: Draft
The code uses an operator for assignment when the intention was to perform a comparison.
Dimensions
- Behavior-Type: Assigning
- Behavior-Property: instead of Comparing
Mapping guidance
This CWE entry is at the Variant level of abstraction, which is a preferred level of abstraction for mapping to the root causes of vulnerabilities.
Carefully read both the name and description to ensure that this mapping is an appropriate fit. Do not try to 'force' a mapping to a lower-level Base/Variant simply to comply with this preferred level of abstraction.
Modes of introduction
In many languages, the compare statement is very close in appearance to the assignment statement and are often confused. This bug is generally the result of a typo. This usually causes obvious problems with program execution. If the comparison is in an "if" statement, the if statement will usually evaluate the value of the right-hand side of the predicate. As a result, this weakness might only go undetected if there's insufficient testing and rarely-reached code paths.
Detection methods
Automated Static Analysis
Automated static analysis, commonly referred to as Static Application Security Testing (SAST), can find some instances of this weakness by analyzing source code (or binary/compiled code) without having to execute it. Typically, this is done by building a model of data flow and control flow, then searching for potentially-vulnerable patterns that connect "sources" (origins of input) with "sinks" (destinations where the data interacts with external components, a lower layer such as the OS, etc.)
Effectiveness: High
Automated Static Analysis - Source Code
An Integrated Development Environment (IDE) or linter can report or highlight this weakness.
Content history
updated Time_of_Introduction
updated Applicable_Platforms, Description, Relationships, Other_Notes, Taxonomy_Mappings
updated Demonstrative_Examples
updated Description, Other_Notes
updated Common_Consequences
updated References, Relationships
updated Demonstrative_Examples, Potential_Mitigations
updated Relationships, Taxonomy_Mappings
updated Relationships
updated Demonstrative_Examples, Taxonomy_Mappings
updated Relationships
updated References, Relationships
updated Demonstrative_Examples, Potential_Mitigations
updated Detection_Factors, Relationships
updated Mapping_Notes
updated Weakness_Ordinalities
updated Detection_Factors, Potential_Mitigations
updated Description, Detection_Factors, Dimensions, Modes_of_Introduction
0 vulnerabilities reference this CWE, most recent first.
No vulnerabilities reference this CWE.
Mitigation
Place constants on the left. If one attempts to assign a constant with a variable, the compiler will produce an error.
No CAPEC attack patterns related to this CWE.