VNX-403 – Exposure of File Descriptor to Unintended Control Sphere ('File Descriptor Leak')

Overview

VNX-403 maps to CWE-403: Exposure of File Descriptor to Unintended Control Sphere (‘File Descriptor Leak’). Detects source patterns associated with CWE-403 (Exposure of File Descriptor to Unintended Control Sphere (‘File Descriptor Leak’)). Each finding should be manually reviewed for exploitability in context.

Severity: Medium | CWE: CWE-403 | Languages: c, cpp

Why This Matters

This weakness class (Exposure of File Descriptor to Unintended Control Sphere (‘File Descriptor Leak’)) creates a concrete exploit surface: the rule searches for the concrete source-level patterns most commonly associated with CWE-403 and surfaces them for review. Each finding should be evaluated in context — the rule catches the pattern, not the context.

What Gets Flagged

// FLAGGED: contains 'fork(' pattern
fork(

Remediation

  1. Review each flagged line and determine whether the pattern represents a real instance of CWE-403 or a false positive.
  2. Replace the flagged construct with a documented safe alternative appropriate to your language and framework.
  3. For confirmed false positives, add a # vulnetix-ignore: VNX-403 comment on the line.
  4. Ensure equivalent test coverage exists to prevent regression.

References