How a Dangling C++ Reference Slipped Past Local Tests but Crashed on a Remote Server

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A developer using a free AI model to generate a C++ function received code that returned a reference to a local variable — a classic dangling reference bug. The faulty code passed all local tests and compiler warnings without issue, masking the underlying undefined behavior. When the same binary was run on a free Linux container server with a different stack layout, it crashed immediately with a segmentation fault. AddressSanitizer and UBSan both pinpointed the exact stack frame responsible, confirming the bug. The fix — switching from a reference return to a value return — was suggested by the AI model itself and validated cleanly under both sanitizers on the remote server.

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