CWE-471

Base 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 Draft 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
Modification of Assumed-Immutable Data (MAID)

Description

The product does not properly protect an assumed-immutable element from being modified by an attacker.

This occurs when a particular input is critical enough to the functioning of the application that it should not be modifiable at all, but it is. Certain resources are often assumed to be immutable when they are not, such as hidden form fields in web applications, cookies, and reverse DNS lookups.

Consequences

Integrity — Modify Application Data

Common data types that are attacked are environment variables, web application parameters, and HTTP headers.

Integrity — Unexpected State

Mitigations

Phase: Architecture and Design, Operation, Implementation

When the data is stored or transmitted through untrusted sources that could modify the data, implement integrity checks to detect unauthorized modification, or store/transmit the data in a trusted location that is free from external influence.