Inaccurate Comments
Incomplete Base
Structure: Simple
Description
The source code contains comments that do not accurately describe or explain aspects of the portion of the code with which the comment is associated.
When a comment does not accurately reflect the associated code elements, this can introduce confusion to a reviewer (due to inconsistencies) or make it more difficult and less efficient to validate that the code is implementing the intended behavior correctly. This issue makes it more difficult to maintain the product, which indirectly affects security by making it more difficult or time-consuming to find and/or fix vulnerabilities. It also might make it easier to introduce vulnerabilities.
Common Consequences 1
Scope: Other
Impact: Reduce Maintainability
Potential Mitigations 1
Phase: Implementation
Verify that each comment accurately reflects what is intended to happen during execution of the code.
Demonstrative Examples 1
In the following Java example the code performs a calculation to determine how much medicine to administer. A comment is provided to give insight into what the calculation shoud be doing. Unfortunately the comment does not match the actual code and thus leaves the reader to wonder which is correct.
Code Example:
Bad
Java
public class Main {
javaIn the correction below, the code functionality has been verified, and the comment has been corrected to reflect the proper calculation.
Code Example:
Good
Java
public class Main {
javaNote that in real-world code, these values should be validated to disallow negative numbers, prevent integer overflow, etc.
References 1
Providing a Framework for Effective Software Quality Assessment
Robert A. Martin and Lawrence H. Shafer
07-1996
ID: REF-963
Applicable Platforms
Languages:
Not Language-Specific : Undetermined
Related Weaknesses