EXP08-A. Ensure pointer arithmetic is used correctly

When performing pointer arithmetic, the size of the value to add to a pointer is automatically scaled to the size of the pointer's type. For instance, when adding a value to a pointer to a four-byte integer, the value is scaled by a factor of four and then added to the pointer. Failing to understand how pointer arithmetic works can lead to miscalculations that result in serious errors, such as buffer overflows.

Non-Compliant Code Example

In this non-compliant code example derived from [[Dowd]], buf_ptr is used to insert new integers into buf, which is an array of 1024 integers. If there is data to be inserted into buf (which is indicated by havedata()) and buf_ptr has not been incremented past buf + sizeof(buf), an integer value is stored at the address referenced by buf_ptr. However, the sizeof operator returns the total number of bytes in buf which is 4096 bytes, assuming four-byte integers. This value is scaled to the size of an integer and added to buf. As a result, the check to make sure integers are not written past the end of buf is incorrect and a buffer overflow is possible.

int buf[1024];
int *buf_ptr = buf;

while (havedata() && buf_ptr < buf + sizeof(buf)) {
    *buf_ptr++ = parseint(getdata());
}

Compliant Code Solution

In this compliant solution, the size of buf is added directly to buf and used as an upper bound. The integer literal is scaled to the size of an integer and the upper bound of buf is checked correctly.

int buf[1024];
int *buf_ptr = buf;

while (havedata() && buf_ptr < (buf+1024)) {
    *buf_ptr++ = parseint(getdata());
}

Risk Analysis

Failure to understand and properly use pointer arithmetic can allow an attacker to execute arbitrary code.

Examples of vulnerabilities resulting from the violation of this rule can be found on the CERT website.

Reference

[[Dowd]] Chapter 6, "C Language Issues" (Vulnerabilities)