CWE-1384

Class Abstraction Level
Pillar — Highest-level weakness category
Class — Abstract, language-independent
Base — Specific enough to detect
Variant — Tied to specific technology
Compound — Requires multiple weaknesses Incomplete MITRE CWE Status
Stable — Fully reviewed and complete
Draft — Under development, may change
Incomplete — Partially defined by MITRE
Deprecated — No longer recommended
Obsolete — Replaced by another CWE
Improper Handling of Physical or Environmental Conditions

Description

The product does not properly handle unexpected physical or environmental conditions that occur naturally or are artificially induced.

Hardware products are typically only guaranteed to behave correctly within certain physical limits or environmental conditions. Such products cannot necessarily control the physical or external conditions to which they are subjected. However, the inability to handle such conditions can undermine a product's security. For example, an unexpected physical or environmental condition may cause the flipping of a bit that is used for an authentication decision. This unexpected condition could occur naturally or be induced artificially by an adversary. Physical or environmental conditions of concern are: Atmospheric characteristics: extreme temperature ranges, etc. Interference: electromagnetic interference (EMI), radio frequency interference (RFI), etc. Assorted light sources: white light, ultra-violet light (UV), lasers, infrared (IR), etc. Power variances: under-voltages, over-voltages, under-current, over-current, etc. Clock variances: glitching, overclocking, clock stretching, etc. Component aging and degradation Materials manipulation: focused ion beams (FIB), etc. Exposure to radiation: x-rays, cosmic radiation, etc.

Consequences

Confidentiality, Integrity, Availability — Varies by Context, Unexpected State

Consequences of this weakness are highly dependent on the role of affected components within the larger product.

Mitigations

Phase: Requirements

In requirements, be specific about expectations for how the product will perform when it exceeds physical and environmental boundary conditions, e.g., by shutting down.

Phase: Architecture and Design, Implementation

Where possible, include independent components that can detect excess environmental conditions and have the capability to shut down the product.

Phase: Architecture and Design, Implementation

Where possible, use shielding or other materials that can increase the adversary's workload and reduce the likelihood of being able to successfully trigger a security-related failure.