Inclusion of Functionality from Untrusted Control Sphere
The product imports, requires, or includes executable functionality from a source that is outside of the intended control sphere.
When software includes functionality from untrusted sources (such as third-party scripts, external modules, or code from untrusted URLs), attackers can inject malicious code that will be executed with the same privileges as the application.
How to fix this vulnerability
Prevention strategies for Inclusion of Untrusted Functionality based on 4 Shoulder detection rules.
Use an allowlist for permitted models, verify integrity with checksums, and load models over HTTPS only
- func handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) { - modelPath := r.FormValue("model") - model, _ := loadModel(modelPath) - resp, _ := http.Get("http://example.com/model.onnx") + var allowedModels = map[string]string{ + "sentiment": "https://models.example.com/sentiment-v2.onnx", + "classify": "https://models.example.com/classify-v1.onnx", + } + + func handler(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) { + modelID := r.FormValue("model") + url, ok := allowedModels[modelID] + if !ok { + http.Error(w, "invalid model", http.StatusBadRequest) + return + } + data, _ := downloadModel(url) + if !verifyChecksum(data, expectedChecksums[modelID]) { + return fmt.Errorf("checksum verification failed") + } + model, _ := loadModel(data) }
Use allowlists for permitted models and verify integrity with checksums
- app.post('/predict', async (req, res) => { - const model = await loadModel(req.body.modelId); + const ALLOWED_MODELS = { 'sentiment-v1': true, 'classify-v2': true }; + + app.post('/predict', async (req, res) => { + if (!ALLOWED_MODELS[req.body.modelId]) { + return res.status(400).json({ error: 'Model not allowed' }); + } + const model = await loadVerifiedModel(req.body.modelId); const result = await model.predict(req.body.input); });
Pin container images to specific version tags or SHA digests for reproducible deployments
apiVersion: v1 kind: Pod spec: containers: - name: app - image: nginx:latest + image: nginx:1.25.3-alpine
Use weights_only=True with torch.load, avoid trust_remote_code=True, and maintain a model allowlist
import torch from transformers import AutoModel - - model = torch.load('model.pt') - nlp_model = AutoModel.from_pretrained('custom/model', trust_remote_code=True) + from safetensors.torch import load_model + + # Safe: weights_only prevents arbitrary code execution + model = torch.load('model.pt', weights_only=True) + + # Even safer: use SafeTensors format + load_model(model, 'model.safetensors') + + # Allowlist for HuggingFace models + ALLOWED_MODELS = ['bert-base-uncased', 'distilbert-base-uncased'] + model_id = request.json['model'] + if model_id not in ALLOWED_MODELS: + raise ValueError('Model not in allowlist') + nlp_model = AutoModel.from_pretrained(model_id)
Find vulnerabilities in your code
Use Shoulder to scan your codebase for Inclusion of Functionality from Untrusted Control Sphere patterns. 4 rules.
# Scan with Shoulder CLI npx @shoulderdev/cli trust --cwe=829 # Or scan entire project npx @shoulderdev/cli trust .
Detection Rules (4)
What to watch for in code reviews
These patterns indicate potential Inclusion of Functionality from Untrusted Control Sphere vulnerabilities. Look for these during code reviews and security audits.
Scan your codebase for Inclusion of Functionality from Untrusted Control Sphere
Shoulder CLI finds vulnerable patterns across your entire codebase.