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CWE-772 - Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime

  • Abstraction:Base
  • Structure:Simple
  • Status:Draft
  • Release Date:2009-05-27
  • Latest Modification Date:2025-09-09

Weakness Name

Missing Release of Resource after Effective Lifetime

Description

The product does not release a resource after its effective lifetime has ended, i.e., after the resource is no longer needed.

Common Consequences

Scope: Availability

Impact: DoS: Resource Consumption (Other), DoS: Resource Consumption (Memory), DoS: Resource Consumption (CPU)

Notes: An attacker that can influence the allocation of resources that are not properly released could deplete the available resource pool and prevent all other processes from accessing the same type of resource. Frequently-affected resources include memory, CPU, disk space, power or battery, etc.

Related Weaknesses

CWE-404Improper Resource Shutdown or ReleaseMedium