A new alert from CISA and the FBI highlights the risks of buffer overflow vulnerabilities and urges software customers to demand secure products from manufacturers.
Summary:
CISA and the FBI have issued a new Secure by Design Alert warning about the risks of buffer overflow vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities, which can lead to data corruption, unauthorized code execution, and network compromise, are frequently exploited by cyber actors. The alert provides best practices for eliminating these risks, urging software manufacturers to adopt memory-safe programming languages and secure development practices. Additionally, CISA and the FBI call on software customers to demand secure products from manufacturers to drive industry-wide improvements in cybersecurity.
Key Takeaways:
- Buffer Overflow Risks – Buffer overflow vulnerabilities remain a major security risk, the agencies note, often exploited by threat actors to gain access to networks and execute malicious code.
- Secure by Design Approach – CISA and the FBI recommend eliminating these vulnerabilities by using memory-safe programming languages and secure development practices.
- Call for Industry Action – Both software manufacturers and customers are urged to prioritize security, with customers encouraged to demand products that incorporate built-in protections.
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have released a Secure by Design Alert, Eliminating Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities, as part of their cooperative Secure by Design Alert series—an ongoing series aimed at advancing industry-wide best practices to eliminate entire classes of vulnerabilities during the design and development phases of the product lifecycle.
“Eliminating Buffer Overflow Vulnerabilities” describes proven techniques to prevent or mitigate buffer overflow vulnerabilities through secure by design principles and best practices.
Buffer overflow vulnerabilities are a prevalent type of defect in memory-safe software design that can lead to system compromise. These vulnerabilities can lead to data corruption, sensitive data exposure, program crashes, and unauthorized code execution. Threat actors frequently exploit these vulnerabilities to gain initial access to an organization’s network and then move laterally to the wider network.
CISA and FBI urge manufacturers to review the alert and, where feasible, eliminate this class of defect by developing new software using memory-safe languages, using secure by design methods, and implementing the best practices supplied in this alert.
CISA and FBI also urge software customers to demand secure products from manufacturers that include these preventions.
CISA’s Secure by Design Pledge page provides more information on its voluntary pledge, which focuses on enterprise software products and services—including on-premises software, cloud services, and software as a service.
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