CWE-591: Sensitive Data Storage in Improperly Locked Memory
Learn about CWE-591 (Sensitive Data Storage in Improperly Locked Memory), its security impact, exploitation methods, and prevention guidelines.
What is Sensitive Data Storage in Improperly Locked Memory?
• Overview: Sensitive Data Storage in Improperly Locked Memory (CWE-591) occurs when sensitive data is stored in memory that is either unlocked or incorrectly locked, allowing the system's virtual memory manager to potentially write this data to swap files on disk. This increases the risk of unauthorized access to the sensitive information.
• Exploitation Methods:
- Attackers can exploit this vulnerability by accessing swap files where sensitive data may have been written.
- Common attack patterns include reading memory dumps, analyzing swap files, and using malware to access unlocked memory areas.
• Security Impact:
- Direct consequences of successful exploitation include unauthorized access to sensitive data such as passwords, encryption keys, and personal information.
- Potential cascading effects could involve further system compromise if attackers gain access to credentials or keys.
- Business impact might include data breaches, financial loss, reputational damage, and regulatory fines.
• Prevention Guidelines:
- Specific code-level fixes involve using platform-specific functions to properly lock memory, such as VirtualLock on Windows or mlock on Linux.
- Security best practices include ensuring that all sensitive data is cleared from memory as soon as it is no longer needed and checking the return values of lock functions to confirm successful execution.
- Recommended tools and frameworks include using secure memory management libraries that handle locking and unlocking memory safely, and utilizing static analysis tools to detect improper memory management practices.
Technical Details
Likelihood of Exploit: Not specified
Affected Languages: Not specified
Affected Technologies: Not specified