CWE-521: Weak Password Requirements
CWE版本: 4.18
更新日期: 2025-09-09
弱点描述
The product does not require that users should have strong passwords, which makes it easier for attackers to compromise user accounts.
扩展描述
Authentication mechanisms often rely on a memorized secret (also known as a password) to provide an assertion of identity for a user of a system. It is therefore important that this password be of sufficient complexity and impractical for an adversary to guess. The specific requirements around how complex a password needs to be depends on the type of system being protected. Selecting the correct password requirements and enforcing them through implementation are critical to the overall success of the authentication mechanism.
常见后果
影响范围: Access Control
技术影响: Gain Privileges or Assume Identity
说明: An attacker could easily guess user passwords and gain access user accounts.
潜在缓解措施
阶段: Architecture and Design
阶段: Architecture and Design
描述: Consider a second authentication factor beyond the password, which prevents the password from being a single point of failure. See CWE-308 for further information.
阶段: Implementation
描述: Consider implementing a password complexity meter to inform users when a chosen password meets the required attributes.
阶段: Implementation
描述: Previously, "password expiration" was widely advocated as a defense-in-depth approach to minimize the risk of weak passwords, and it has become a common practice. Password expiration requires a password to be changed within a fixed time window (such as every 90 days). However, this approach has significant limitations in the current threat landscape, and its utility has been reduced in light of the adoption of related protection mechanisms (such as password complexity and computational effort), along with the recognition that regular password changes often caused users to generate more predictable passwords. As a result, this is now a Discouraged Common Practice [REF-1488] [REF-1489], especially as the sole factor in protecting passwords. It is still strongly encouraged to force password changes in case of evidence of compromise, but this is not the same as a forced "expiration" on an arbitrary time frame.
检测方法
方法: Automated Static Analysis
Automated static analysis, commonly referred to as Static Application Security Testing (SAST), can find some instances of this weakness by analyzing source code (or binary/compiled code) without having to execute it. Typically, this is done by building a model of data flow and control flow, then searching for potentially-vulnerable patterns that connect "sources" (origins of input) with "sinks" (destinations where the data interacts with external components, a lower layer such as the OS, etc.)
有效性: High
观察示例
参考: CVE-2020-4574
key server application does not require strong passwords
引入模式
| 阶段 | 说明 |
|---|---|
| Architecture and Design | COMMISSION: This weakness refers to an incorrect design related to an architectural security tactic. |
| Implementation | Not enforcing the password policy stated in a products design can allow users to create passwords that do not provide the necessary level of protection. |
适用平台
编程语言
技术
分类映射
| 分类名称 | 条目ID | 条目名称 | 映射适配度 |
|---|---|---|---|
| OWASP Top Ten 2004 | A3 | Broken Authentication and Session Management | CWE More Specific |
关键信息
CWE ID: CWE-521
抽象级别: Base
结构: Simple
状态: Draft