what happens if i acess a freed variable in c

Accessing a Freed Variable in C

When a program accesses a variable that has been freed in C, it can lead to undefined behavior. Here's what happens:

1. Undefined Behavior: Accessing a freed variable in C leads to undefined behavior. This means that the behavior of the program is unpredictable and can vary from one implementation to another.

2. Memory Corruption: Accessing a freed variable can corrupt the memory. The memory that was previously allocated to the variable may have been released back to the system, and attempting to access it can lead to memory corruption.

3. Potential Crashes: Accessing a freed variable can potentially cause the program to crash. This can happen if the program tries to access memory that it no longer has permission to access.

4. Security Vulnerabilities: Accessing a freed variable can also lead to security vulnerabilities. If an attacker can control the data that is accessed after the variable has been freed, it can lead to exploitation of the program.