A method for protecting memory segments of a memory device is provided. The method includes receiving, by a processor coupled to the memory device, a request to allocate memory from an application, being executed by the processor, wherein the request includes a requested memory size and allocating, by the processor, a portion of memory having a size greater than the requested memory size. The method also includes creating, by the processor, a permitted read counter associated with the allocated portion of memory, wherein the permitted read counter is initialized to an initial value, and determining, by the processor, whether access to the memory segment is permitted using the permitted read counter. A system for protecting memory segments of a memory device is also disclosed.