CWE-775: Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime

Source-backed guidance

Additional facts reviewed against primary or authoritative security sources.

Verify controls for CWE-775 with SSDF evidence

Use NIST SSDF verification and vulnerability-response practices to detect CWE-775, Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime, throughout the product lifecycle. Derive review questions, static or dynamic checks, and negative tests from the CWE's causal behavior; define the components and lifecycle stages each check covers; and retain findings with enough evidence to distinguish the root cause from symptoms and impacts. Track escapes and false negatives, then improve the verification plan after every confirmed occurrence.

NIST SP 800-218 Secure Software Development Framework — National Institute of Standards and Technology

Apply Resource Limitation controls for Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime

MITRE associates mitigation with Operation, and Architecture and Design; the listed strategies include Resource Limitation; documented detection approaches include Automated Static Analysis. Use these source-defined anchors to turn CWE-775 into implementation, review, and verification checks for the affected component.

CWE-775: Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime — MITRE CWE

Triage CWE-775 against known exploitation evidence

Use CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog to test whether a vulnerability mapped to CWE-775, Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime, has evidence of exploitation in the wild. Confirm the CVE-to-CWE root-cause mapping independently before attaching the example, then capture the affected product, required action, and remediation deadline. A missing KEV match is not evidence that the weakness is unexploited, and a KEV entry must not be generalized to every occurrence of this CWE.

Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog — Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

Apply precise root-cause mapping to CWE-775

Apply MITRE's full root-cause mapping guidance when using CWE-775, Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime. Separate weakness language from attacker prerequisites and technical impact, check the entry's abstraction and vulnerability-mapping notes, and prefer the most specific Base or Variant supported by the evidence. Record the rejected alternatives and require an independent review before the mapping is used for remediation trends or program metrics.

CVE to CWE Root Cause Mapping Guidance — MITRE CWE

Validate CWE-775 with root-cause mapping checks

Apply MITRE's root-cause mapping quick tips to CWE-775, Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime. Confirm the finding describes the causal weakness rather than an impact or attack pattern, compare the abstraction and mapping notes with plausible alternatives, and have a second reviewer challenge the selection. Preserve the evidence and reasoning so recurring defects can be measured against one consistent identifier.

CVE to CWE Root Cause Mapping Quick Tips — MITRE CWE

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CWE-775: Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime?+

CWE-775: Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime is a Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) entry maintained by MITRE. The product does not release a file descriptor or handle after its effective lifetime has ended, i.e., after the file descriptor/handle is no longer needed. When a file descriptor or handle is not released after use (typically by explicitly closing it), attackers can cause a denial of service by consuming all available file descriptors/handles, or otherwise preventing other system processes from obtaining their own file descriptors/handles.

What are the security consequences of Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime?+

If exploited, CWE-775 (Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime) it can compromise Availability, leading to outcomes such as DoS: Resource Consumption (Other).

Which programming languages are affected by Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime?+

CWE-775 commonly affects Not Language-Specific. Note that weaknesses are often language-agnostic patterns, so secure coding practices apply broadly.

What are real-world examples of Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime?+

MITRE documents real CVEs mapped to CWE-775, including CVE-2007-0897. You can look up the full details of each CVE, including CVSS scores and remediation guidance, on our CVE Lookup tool.

What is the difference between a CWE and a CVE?+

A CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) like CWE-775 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.

CWE-775: Missing Release of File Descriptor or Handle after Effective Lifetime

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Observed CVE Examples (1)

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