Taint checking

Computer language security feature Taint checking is a feature in some computer programming languages, such as Perl, Ruby or Ballerina designed to increase security by preventing malicious users from executing commands on a host computer. Taint checks highlight specific security risks primarily associated with web sites which are attacked using techniques such as SQL injection or buffer overflow attack approaches. Overview The concept behind taint checking is that any variable that can be modified by an outside user (for example a variable set by a field in a web form) poses a potential security risk. If that variable is used in an expression that sets a second variable, that second variable is now also suspicious. The taint checking tool can then proceed variable by variable forming a list of variables which are potentially influenced by outside input. If any of these variables is used to execute dangerous commands (such as direct commands to a SQL database or the host computer operating system), the taint checker warns that the program is using a potentially dangerous tainted variable. The computer programmer can then redesign the program to erect a safe wall around the dangerous