Meta attack pattern
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CAPEC-129: Pointer Manipulation
This attack pattern involves an adversary manipulating a pointer within a target application resulting in the application accessing an unintended memory location. This can result in the crashing of the application or, for certain pointer values, access to data that would not normally be possible or the execution of arbitrary code. Since pointers are simply integer variables, Integer Attacks may often be used in Pointer Attacks.
Last updated
Medium
Typical severity
Per MITRE
Not rated
Likelihood of attack
Per MITRE
3
Related weaknesses
CWEs this targets
Meta
Abstraction
MITRE classification
Overview
CAPEC-129 (Pointer Manipulation) is a meta-level attack pattern catalogued by MITRE in the Common Attack Pattern Enumeration and Classification (CAPEC). It describes a recurring method attackers use to exploit software weaknesses.
What the attacker needs
Prerequisites
- The target application must have a pointer variable that the attacker can influence to hold an arbitrary value.
Resources required
- None: No specialized resources are required to execute this type of attack.
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about CAPEC-129.
- What is CAPEC-129?
- This attack pattern involves an adversary manipulating a pointer within a target application resulting in the application accessing an unintended memory location. This can result in the crashing of the application or, for certain pointer values, access to data that would not normally be possible or the execution of arbitrary code. Since pointers are simply integer variables, Integer Attacks may often be used in Pointer Attacks.