CWE-201: Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data

BaseDraft

The code transmits data to another actor, but a portion of the data includes sensitive information that should not be accessible to that actor.

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Technical Details

Structure
Simple
Vulnerability Mapping
ALLOWED

Applicable To

Languages
Not Language-Specific
Platforms

Source-backed guidance

Additional facts reviewed against primary or authoritative security sources.

Verify controls for CWE-201 with SSDF evidence

Use NIST SSDF verification and vulnerability-response practices to detect CWE-201, Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data, throughout the product lifecycle. Derive review questions, static or dynamic checks, and negative tests from the CWE's causal behavior; define the components and lifecycle stages each check covers; and retain findings with enough evidence to distinguish the root cause from symptoms and impacts. Track escapes and false negatives, then improve the verification plan after every confirmed occurrence.

NIST SP 800-218 Secure Software Development Framework — National Institute of Standards and Technology

Apply Separation of Privilege controls for Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data

MITRE associates mitigation with Requirements, Implementation, System Configuration, and Architecture and Design; the listed strategies include Separation of Privilege; documented detection approaches include Automated Static Analysis. Use these source-defined anchors to turn CWE-201 into implementation, review, and verification checks for the affected component.

CWE-201: Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data — MITRE CWE

Triage CWE-201 against known exploitation evidence

Use CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog to test whether a vulnerability mapped to CWE-201, Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data, has evidence of exploitation in the wild. Confirm the CVE-to-CWE root-cause mapping independently before attaching the example, then capture the affected product, required action, and remediation deadline. A missing KEV match is not evidence that the weakness is unexploited, and a KEV entry must not be generalized to every occurrence of this CWE.

Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog — Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency

Apply precise root-cause mapping to CWE-201

Apply MITRE's full root-cause mapping guidance when using CWE-201, Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data. Separate weakness language from attacker prerequisites and technical impact, check the entry's abstraction and vulnerability-mapping notes, and prefer the most specific Base or Variant supported by the evidence. Record the rejected alternatives and require an independent review before the mapping is used for remediation trends or program metrics.

CVE to CWE Root Cause Mapping Guidance — MITRE CWE

Validate CWE-201 with root-cause mapping checks

Apply MITRE's root-cause mapping quick tips to CWE-201, Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data. Confirm the finding describes the causal weakness rather than an impact or attack pattern, compare the abstraction and mapping notes with plausible alternatives, and have a second reviewer challenge the selection. Preserve the evidence and reasoning so recurring defects can be measured against one consistent identifier.

CVE to CWE Root Cause Mapping Quick Tips — MITRE CWE

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CWE-201: Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data?+

CWE-201: Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data is a Common Weakness Enumeration (CWE) entry maintained by MITRE. The code transmits data to another actor, but a portion of the data includes sensitive information that should not be accessible to that actor.

What are the security consequences of Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data?+

If exploited, CWE-201 (Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data) it can compromise Confidentiality, leading to outcomes such as Read Files or Directories, Read Memory and Read Application Data.

How do you prevent or mitigate Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data?+

Recommended mitigations for CWE-201 include: Specify which data in the software should be regarded as sensitive. Consider which types of users should have access to which types of data. Ensure that any possibly sensitive data specified in the requirements is verified with designers to ensure that it is either a calculated risk or mitigated elsewhere. Any information that is not necessary to the functionality should be removed in order to lower both the overhead and the possibility of security sensitive data being sent. Setup default error messages so that unexpected errors do not disclose sensitive information.

Which programming languages are affected by Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data?+

CWE-201 commonly affects Not Language-Specific. Note that weaknesses are often language-agnostic patterns, so secure coding practices apply broadly.

What are real-world examples of Insertion of Sensitive Information Into Sent Data?+

MITRE documents real CVEs mapped to CWE-201, including CVE-2023-27265, CVE-2023-32275 and CVE-2022-0708. You can look up the full details of each CVE, including CVSS scores and remediation guidance, on our CVE Lookup tool.

What is the difference between a CWE and a CVE?+

A CWE (Common Weakness Enumeration) like CWE-201 describes a category of software weakness — the underlying flaw type. A CVE (Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures) identifies a specific, real-world vulnerability in a particular product. In short, a CWE is the kind of mistake, and a CVE is an instance of that mistake being found in software.

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