CWE-1263

Improper Physical Access Control

Weakness Description

The product is designed with access restricted to certain information, but it does not sufficiently protect against an unauthorized actor with physical access to these areas.

Sections of a product intended to have restricted access may be inadvertently or intentionally rendered accessible when the implemented physical protections are insufficient. The specific requirements around how robust the design of the physical protection mechanism needs to be depends on the type of product being protected. Selecting the correct physical protection mechanism and properly enforcing it through implementation and manufacturing are critical to the overall physical security of the product.

Potential Mitigations

Architecture and Design

Specific protection requirements depend strongly on contextual factors including the level of acceptable risk associated with compromise to the product's protection mechanism. Designers could incorporate anti-tampering measures that protect against or detect when the product has been tampered with.

Testing

The testing phase of the lifecycle should establish a method for determining whether the protection mechanism is sufficient to prevent unauthorized access.

Manufacturing

Ensure that all protection mechanisms are fully activated at the time of manufacturing and distribution.

Common Consequences

ConfidentialityIntegrityAccess Control
Varies by Context
Advertisement

Related Weaknesses