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Defining a wrapper method facilitates installing appropriate security manager checks, performing input validation before passing the arguments to the native code or when obtaining return values, defensively copying mutable inputs and sanitizing user input. As a result every native method must be private, and must be invoked only by a wrapper method.

Noncompliant Code Example

In this noncompliant code example, the nativeOperation is both native and public; for that reason, untrusted callers may invoke it. Native method invocations bypass security manager checks.

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Code Block

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public final class NativeMethod {

  // public native method
  public native void nativeOperation(byte[] data, int offset, int len);

  // wrapper method that lacks security checks and input validation
  public void doOperation(byte[] data, int offset, int len) {
    nativeOperation(data, offset, len);
  }
  
  static {
    // load native library in static initializer of class
    System.loadLibrary("NativeMethodLib"); 
  }
}

Compliant Solution

This compliant solution declares the native method private. Furthermore, the doOperation() wrapper method performs routine permission checking to determine whether the succeeding operations are permitted to continue. This is followed by the creation of a defensive copy of the mutable input array data as well as by range checking of the parameters. The nativeOperation() method is consequently called with safe inputs. Note that the validation checks must produce outputs that conform to the input requirements of the native implementations/libraries.

Code Block

bgColor	#ccccff

public final class NativeMethodWrapper {

  // private native method
  private native void nativeOperation(byte[] data, int offset, int len);

  // wrapper method performs SecurityManager and input validation checks
  public void doOperation(byte[] data, int offset, int len) {
    // permission needed to invoke native method
    securityManagerCheck();

    if (data == null) {
      throw new NullPointerException();
    }

    // copy mutable input
    data = data.clone();

    // validate input
    if ((offset < 0) || (len < 0) || (offset > (data.length - len))) {
      throw new IllegalArgumentException();
    }

    nativeOperation(data, offset, len);
  }

  static {
    // load native library in static initializer of class
    System.loadLibrary("NativeMethodLib"); 
  }
}

Risk Assessment

Failure to define wrappers around native methods can allow unprivileged callers to invoke them and consequently exploit inherent vulnerabilities such as those resulting from invalid inputs.

Rule	Severity	Likelihood	Remediation Cost	Priority	Level
SEC18-J	medium	probable	high	P4	L3

Automated Detection

Wiki Markup

Automated detection is not feasible in the fully general case. However, an approach similar to Design Fragments \[[Fairbanks 07|AA. Bibliography#Fairbanks 07]\] could assist both programmers and static analysis tools.

Related Vulnerabilities

Search for vulnerabilities resulting from the violation of this rule on the CERT website.

Related Guidelines

<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="353c05206c643d7f-1996427b-413a4703-ade695ba-7aa212842add0be3cb7c7874"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[

[[MITRE 2009

AA. Bibliography#MITRE 09]]

[CWE ID 111

http://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/111.html] "Direct Use of Unsafe JNI"

]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>

Bibliography

<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="299d8803f3a10e79-631212be-4426450f-80969f56-36739c99367b470d5912196b"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[	[[Fairbanks 2007	AA. Bibliography#Fairbanks 07]]		]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>
<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="0c256d8275a16aac-ef120abe-4657436f-87a296b6-70ebf8ec1e8335274d60700d"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[	[[JNI 2006	AA. Bibliography#JNI 06]]		]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>
<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="69223530ec2f553e-770105c3-4ea94056-aeb89f72-4a1b4c657e6044d32368827e"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[	[[Liang 1997	AA. Bibliography#Liang 97]]		]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>
<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="11e85bc81e5c6631-ca109aaa-452e4b55-a90ea8af-41abcaa2726d54608700eeff"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[	[[Macgregor 1998	AA. Bibliography#Macgregor 98]]	Section 2.2.3, Interfaces and Architectures	]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>
<ac:structured-macro ac:name="unmigrated-wiki-markup" ac:schema-version="1" ac:macro-id="fa30147999a63873-1de2d4d6-4e344955-85d4b9f5-0fa267b73c9d139e37a1bdf5"><ac:plain-text-body><![CDATA[	[[SCG 2007	AA. Bibliography#SCG 07]]	Guideline 3-3 Define wrappers around native methods	]]></ac:plain-text-body></ac:structured-macro>

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