What is a dangling pointer?

A dangling pointer is a programming term used to describe a pointer that points to a memory location that has been deallocated or freed. The memory might have been released explicitly by the programmer or due to the scope of a variable ending. When a program tries to access the memory through the dangling pointer, it can lead to unpredictable behavior, crashes, or security vulnerabilities, as the memory may now be used for other purposes. Properly managing and nullifying pointers after freeing their associated memory is essential to avoid dangling pointer issues and ensure memory safety in programming.