Additional Notes
Why does returning a reference to a mutable internal collection change runtime behavior?
Track: Java
Topic: OOP
Focus: Defensive Copying
Java: Defensive Copying
Answer
It allows external code to modify the collection, violating encapsulation.
Returning a reference to a mutable collection can lead to external code changing the collection's contents, which might violate the object's intended state and behavior. For example, directly exposing an internal list of order items in an e-commerce application could let clients remove or add items, disrupting order processing.
Returning a reference to a mutable collection can lead to external code changing the collection's contents, which might violate the object's intended state and behavior. For example, directly exposing an internal list of order items in an e-commerce application could let clients remove or add items, disrupting order processing.
Topics: Defensive Copying Java OOP