Question

Describe what an overflow is and how it occurs. Conduct research on the internet and based upon your research, describe some of the problems that overflow causes there are many but one area that you should research (among others) is the concept of integer based security attacks.

Answer 1

Answer)

An overflow is the error which occurs in the computer when the computer tries to handle a number or data which is too large for that computer architecture or type. Today computers have specific defined values and data which they can represent and whenever with any computation or execution of instructions or program the result arrives which is outside this range then it will be an overflow error. There are different types of overflow such as:

Integer overflow

Buffer overflow

Heap overflow

Here the problems that overflow causes are:

Changing the actual output

Depicting a erroneous output

Not being able to store the actual output

Performing erroneous calculations

The integer overflow occurs when there integer range cannot be handled and stored beyond the limit which is specified as the expected result. So, beyond that there is an error and thus this can be used by the attackers for integer based security attacks.

The reasons of the integer based security attacks are:

Signed and Unsigned mismatches

Integer Truncations

Sign Extension

The impact of the integer based security attacks and examples are:

Security breach using integer overflow converting the actual integer into something else

Utilizing the integer overflow of the system or application to manipulate monetary elements

Forcing an integer to go out of range such that an attacker can have malicious processes using it

Manipulating the actual integer variable of the target and value of it