CWE-462 - Duplicate Key in Associative List (Alist)
- Abstraction:Variant
- Structure:Simple
- Status:Incomplete
- Release Date:2006-07-19
- Latest Modification Date:2023-06-29
Weakness Name
Duplicate Key in Associative List (Alist)
Description
Duplicate keys in associative lists can lead to non-unique keys being mistaken for an error.
A duplicate key entry -- if the alist is designed properly -- could be used as a constant time replace function. However, duplicate key entries could be inserted by mistake. Because of this ambiguity, duplicate key entries in an association list are not recommended and should not be allowed.
Common Consequences
Scope: Other
Impact: Quality Degradation, Varies by Context
