Final answer:
The confused deputy problem in computer security refers to a situation where a program with elevated privileges is tricked into acting on behalf of a lower-privileged entity, potentially leading to privilege escalation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The confused deputy problem is a computer security issue that occurs when a program (the deputy) is tricked into misusing its authority. This typically happens when the deputy, which has permissions to perform certain actions, receives instructions from another program or user without proper authentication or validation of those instructions. Suppose the deputy has a higher level of privilege than the requesting entity; in that case, it could inadvertently perform actions that should be restricted to the latter, leading to privilege escalation.
Imagine a file-handling program that has permission to edit files based on user requests. If an attacker can manipulate the program into using its privileges to edit files that the attacker doesn't have access to personally, the confused deputy has escalated the attacker's privileges by performing actions on their behalf.
Preventing confused deputy problems generally requires careful design of the software's security architecture, ensuring that it verifies the appropriateness of all requests before acting and that delegation of authority is handled safely.