Multiple catch blocks of the appropriate type should be used instead of catching a general exception, and then testing on the type.
For example, following code:
try { /* ... */ } catch (Exception e) { if(e instanceof IOException) { /* ... */ } // Non-Compliant if(e instanceof NullPointerException{ /* ... */ } // Non-Compliant }
should be refactored into:
try { /* ... */ } catch (IOException e) { /* ... */ } // Compliant } catch (NullPointerException e) { /* ... */ } // Compliant