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Weakness · High

CWE-307: Improper Restriction of Excessive Authentication Attempts

What it is

The product does not implement sufficient measures to prevent multiple failed authentication attempts within a short time frame.

MITRE CWE 4.19.1

Severity (our rating)
High
Likelihood of exploit
Not rated by MITRE
Introduced during
Architecture and Design
Exploited in the wild
No CVE in CISA's catalog

What an attacker can do

  • Bypass Protection Mechanism (Access Control)

How to prevent it

Architecture and Design

  • Common protection mechanisms include: Disconnecting the user after a small number of failed attempts Implementing a timeout Locking out a targeted account Requiring a computational task on the user's part.
  • Use a vetted library or framework that does not allow this weakness to occur or provides constructs that make this weakness easier to avoid. Consider using libraries with authentication capabilities such as OpenSSL or the ESAPI Authenticator.

How to find it

  • Dynamic Analysis with Automated Results Interpretation. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Highly cost effective: Web Application Scanner Web Services Scanner Database Scanners Cost effective for partial coverage: Host-based Vulnerability Scanners - Examine configuration for flaws, verifying that audit mechanisms work, ensure host configuration meets certain predefined criteria
  • Dynamic Analysis with Manual Results Interpretation. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Highly cost effective: Fuzz Tester Framework-based Fuzzer Cost effective for partial coverage: Forced Path Execution
  • Manual Static Analysis - Source Code. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Highly cost effective: Focused Manual Spotcheck - Focused manual analysis of source Manual Source Code Review (not inspections)
  • Automated Static Analysis - Source Code. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Cost effective for partial coverage: Source code Weakness Analyzer Context-configured Source Code Weakness Analyzer
  • Automated Static Analysis. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Cost effective for partial coverage: Configuration Checker
  • Architecture or Design Review. According to SOAR, the following detection techniques may be useful: Highly cost effective: Formal Methods / Correct-By-Construction Cost effective for partial coverage: Inspection (IEEE 1028 standard) (can apply to requirements, design, source code, etc.)

CWE-307 on MITRE's CWE site

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Source: MITRE Common Weakness Enumeration, CWE version 4.19.1. CWE is a trademark of The MITRE Corporation.