The source code does not follow desired style or formatting for indentation, white space, comments, etc.

What CVEs are caused by CWE-1078?

1 recorded CVEs are attributed to CWE-1078, including CVE-2024-0667.

What are the consequences of CWE-1078?

Exploiting CWE-1078 can lead to: Increase Analytical Complexity.

Is CWE-1078 actively exploited?

1 recorded CVEs are caused by CWE-1078; none are currently in CISA's KEV catalog of actively exploited flaws.

CWE-1078: Inappropriate Source Code Style or Formatting

Q: How is CWE-1078 detected?

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.)

Overview

CWE-1078 (Inappropriate Source Code Style or Formatting) is a class-level software weakness catalogued by MITRE in the Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE). It describes a recurring type of mistake that can lead to exploitable security vulnerabilities.

Real-world CVEs

1 recorded CVEs are caused by CWE-1078 (Inappropriate Source Code Style or Formatting). The highest-severity and most recent are shown first.

CVE-2024-0667
Form-Maker (twb_form-maker) <= 1.15.21 - Cross-Site Request Forgery to Limited Code Execution via Execute
Medium · CVSS 6.3 · EPSS 14th
2024-01-27

Common consequences

What can happen when CWE-1078 is exploited.

Increase Analytical Complexity

Affects: Other

Variations in indentation and other white space, comments, etc. can make it more difficult for human analysts to understand the actual behavior that is being implemented.

How it happens

When it is introduced

Typically introduced during these phases of the software lifecycle.

Implementation

How to detect it

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 weaknesses.

Code examples

Illustrative examples from MITRE showing how the weakness appears in code.

The usage of symbolic names instead of hard-coded constants is preferred.

Vulnerable example

c

char buffer[1024];

Safe example

c

enum { MAX_BUFFER_SIZE = 1024 };

How this weakness relates to others in the CWE hierarchy.

Parent

CWE-1076: Insufficient Adherence to Expected Conventions

Child

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about CWE-1078.

What is CWE-1078?: The source code does not follow desired style or formatting for indentation, white space, comments, etc.
What CVEs are caused by CWE-1078?: 1 recorded CVEs are attributed to CWE-1078, including CVE-2024-0667.
How is CWE-1078 detected?: 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.)
What are the consequences of CWE-1078?: Exploiting CWE-1078 can lead to: Increase Analytical Complexity.
Is CWE-1078 actively exploited?: 1 recorded CVEs are caused by CWE-1078; none are currently in CISA's KEV catalog of actively exploited flaws.

References

Weakness data is sourced from the MITRE CWE catalog (v4.20). CVE associations are aggregated and kept current by RadicalNotion.AI.