CWE-276: CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions

CWE-276: CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions is a Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) entry maintained by MITRE. Description

Yes. CWE-276 ranked #25 in the CWE Top 25 for 2023, associated with 178 CVEs that year. The CWE Top 25 highlights the most common and impactful software weaknesses based on real-world vulnerability data.

If exploited, CWE-276 (CWE-276: Incorrect Default Permissions) it can compromise Read Application Data and Modify Application Data, leading to outcomes such as Scope: Confidentiality and Integrity.

Recommended mitigations for CWE-276 include: The architecture needs to access and modification attributes for files to only those users who actually require those actions. Strategy: Separation of Privilege Compartmentalize the system to have "safe" areas where trust boundaries can be unambiguously drawn. Do not allow sensitive data to go outside of the trust boundary and always be careful when interfacing with a compartment outside of the safe area. Ensure that appropriate compartmentalization is built into the system design, and the compartmentalization allows for and reinforces privilege separation functionality. Architects and designers should rely on the principle of least privilege to decide the appropriate time to use privileges and the time to drop privileges.

CWE-276 commonly affects Languages. Note that weaknesses are often language-agnostic patterns, so secure coding practices apply broadly.

A CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) like CWE-276 describes a category of software weakness — the underlying flaw type. A CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) identifies a specific, real-world vulnerability in a particular product. In short, a CWE is the kind of mistake, and a CVE is an instance of that mistake being found in software.