Protection Mechanism Failure (CWE-693)
CWE-693 is a Pillar covering products that do not use, or wrongly use, a protection mechanism that should defend against directed attacks. MITRE separates three cases: a mechanism that is missing, one that is insufficient, and one that exists but is ignored on some code path. MITRE discourages mapping vulnerabilities directly to this Pillar.
About CWE-693
The consequence is bypass of the protection mechanism, which leaves the asset it guarded exposed.
MITRE marks CWE-693 as DISCOURAGED for mapping real-world vulnerabilities because it is a Pillar; use children or descendants instead.
Mitigations
- +Repeat every client-side security check on the server, because client checks can be removed or bypassed (CWE-602).
- +Specify which data needs encryption and use well-vetted algorithms for its storage and transmission (CWE-311).
- +Use multiple simultaneous checks before granting access to critical operations, rather than a single factor (CWE-654).
- +Map each finding to the specific child entry that names the failed mechanism.
CWE-693 Vulnerabilities
10 CVEs| CVE | Title | Vendor | CVSS | EPSS | KEV | Published |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-32202 | Windows Shell Spoofing Vulnerability | Microsoft | 4.3 | 4.9% | KEV | 2026-04-14 |
| CVE-2025-40536 | SolarWinds Web Help Desk Security Control Bypass Vulnerability | SolarWinds | 8.1 | 73.6% | KEV | 2026-01-28 |
| CVE-2026-21510 | Windows Shell Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 8.8 | 24.5% | KEV | 2026-02-10 |
| CVE-2026-21513 | MSHTML Framework Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 8.8 | 15.9% | KEV | 2026-02-10 |
| CVE-2025-0411 | 7-Zip Mark-of-the-Web Bypass Vulnerability | 7-Zip | 7.0 | 67.1% | KEV | 2025-01-25 |
| CVE-2024-38217 | Windows Mark of the Web Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 5.4 | 10.0% | KEV | 2024-09-10 |
| CVE-2024-38226 | Microsoft Publisher Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 7.3 | 2.7% | KEV | 2024-09-10 |
| CVE-2024-38213 | Windows Mark of the Web Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 6.5 | 13.6% | KEV | 2024-08-13 |
| CVE-2024-29988 | SmartScreen Prompt Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 8.8 | 44.9% | KEV | 2024-04-09 |
| CVE-2024-21412 | Internet Shortcut Files Security Feature Bypass Vulnerability | Microsoft | 8.1 | 99.4% | KEV | 2024-02-13 |
Most Affected Vendors
Tool Categories That Address This Weakness
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CWE-693?→
CWE-693 is a Pillar for protection mechanism failures, where a defense is absent, insufficient or not applied on some path.
Can CWE-693 be used to classify a vulnerability?→
MITRE discourages it because it is extremely high-level. Children or descendants of the entry are recommended instead.
How many exploited vulnerabilities are classified as CWE-693?→
This database lists 10 CVE records mapped to CWE-693 by their CVE Numbering Authority. 10 of them are in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog, and CISA links 1 to known ransomware campaigns. Examples include CVE-2026-32202, CVE-2025-40536, CVE-2026-21510.
Sources
Weakness definitions summarized from the CWE List, © The MITRE Corporation, used under the CWE Terms of Use. CWE mappings come from each CVE record's CNA. Exploited-in-the-wild data from the CISA KEV catalog (CC0). This site is not endorsed or certified by MITRE or CISA.