CWE-451 Class Draft

User Interface (UI) Misrepresentation of Critical Information

This vulnerability occurs when a user interface fails to accurately display or highlight crucial information, potentially misleading users about the true state of the system or the source of data.…

Definition

What is CWE-451?

This vulnerability occurs when a user interface fails to accurately display or highlight crucial information, potentially misleading users about the true state of the system or the source of data. Attackers exploit this weakness to trick users into performing unintended actions, often as part of phishing campaigns or other deception-based attacks.
When an application's UI misrepresents critical data—whether by showing incorrect information, obscuring it, or spoofing its origin—it breaks the user's trust in the interface. This can lead directly to security failures, such as users approving dangerous transactions, downloading malicious files, or ignoring genuine security alerts because they appear untrustworthy. Essentially, if the user cannot rely on what they see, they become vulnerable to manipulation. Common attack methods include overlaying fake elements over legitimate ones (clickjacking), manipulating file icons to hide dangerous extensions, exploiting race conditions to show false status indicators, or using visual tricks like character homographs in URLs. Developers must treat the UI as a critical security layer, ensuring it consistently and clearly communicates the true system state, source of information, and potential risks without ambiguity or omission.
Real-world impact

Real-world CVEs caused by CWE-451

  • CVE-2004-2227

    Web browser's filename selection dialog only shows the beginning portion of long filenames, which can trick users into launching executables with dangerous extensions.

  • CVE-2001-0398

    Attachment with many spaces in filename bypasses "dangerous content" warning and uses different icon. Likely resultant.

  • CVE-2001-0643

    Misrepresentation and equivalence issue.

  • CVE-2005-0593

    Lock spoofing from several different weaknesses.

  • CVE-2004-1104

    Incorrect indicator: web browser can be tricked into presenting the wrong URL

  • CVE-2005-0143

    Incorrect indicator: Lock icon displayed when an insecure page loads a binary file loaded from a trusted site.

  • CVE-2005-0144

    Incorrect indicator: Secure "lock" icon is presented for one channel, while an insecure page is being simultaneously loaded in another channel.

  • CVE-2004-0761

    Incorrect indicator: Certain redirect sequences cause security lock icon to appear in web browser, even when page is not encrypted.

How attackers exploit it

Step-by-step attacker path

  1. 1

    Identify a code path that handles untrusted input without validation.

  2. 2

    Craft a payload that exercises the unsafe behavior — injection, traversal, overflow, or logic abuse.

  3. 3

    Deliver the payload through a normal request and observe the application's reaction.

  4. 4

    Iterate until the response leaks data, executes attacker code, or escalates privileges.

Vulnerable code example

Vulnerable pseudo

MITRE has not published a code example for this CWE. The pattern below is illustrative — see Resources for canonical references.

Vulnerable pseudo 
// Example pattern — see MITRE for the canonical references.
function handleRequest(input) {
  // Untrusted input flows directly into the sensitive sink.
  return executeUnsafe(input);
}
Secure code example

Secure pseudo

Secure pseudo 
// Validate, sanitize, or use a safe API before reaching the sink.
function handleRequest(input) {
  const safe = validateAndEscape(input);
  return executeWithGuards(safe);
}
What changed: the unsafe sink is replaced (or the input is validated/escaped) so the same payload no longer triggers the weakness.
Prevention checklist

How to prevent CWE-451

  • Implementation Perform data validation (e.g. syntax, length, etc.) before interpreting the data.
  • Architecture and Design Create a strategy for presenting information, and plan for how to display unusual characters.
Detection signals

How to detect CWE-451

SAST High

Run static analysis (SAST) on the codebase looking for the unsafe pattern in the data flow.

DAST Moderate

Run dynamic application security testing against the live endpoint.

Runtime Moderate

Watch runtime logs for unusual exception traces, malformed input, or authorization bypass attempts.

Code review Moderate

Code review: flag any new code that handles input from this surface without using the validated framework helpers.

Plexicus auto-fix

Plexicus auto-detects CWE-451 and opens a fix PR in under 60 seconds.

Codex Remedium scans every commit, identifies this exact weakness, and ships a reviewer-ready pull request with the patch. No tickets. No hand-offs.

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Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions

What is CWE-451?

This vulnerability occurs when a user interface fails to accurately display or highlight crucial information, potentially misleading users about the true state of the system or the source of data. Attackers exploit this weakness to trick users into performing unintended actions, often as part of phishing campaigns or other deception-based attacks.

How serious is CWE-451?

MITRE has not published a likelihood-of-exploit rating for this weakness. Treat it as medium-impact until your threat model proves otherwise.

What languages or platforms are affected by CWE-451?

MITRE has not specified affected platforms for this CWE — it can apply across most application stacks.

How can I prevent CWE-451?

Perform data validation (e.g. syntax, length, etc.) before interpreting the data. Create a strategy for presenting information, and plan for how to display unusual characters.

How does Plexicus detect and fix CWE-451?

Plexicus's SAST engine matches the data-flow signature for CWE-451 on every commit. When a match is found, our Codex Remedium agent opens a fix PR with the corrected code, tests, and a one-line summary for the reviewer.

Where can I learn more about CWE-451?

MITRE publishes the canonical definition at https://cwe.mitre.org/data/definitions/451.html. You can also reference OWASP and NIST documentation for adjacent guidance.

Related weaknesses

Weaknesses related to CWE-451

CWE-684 Parent

Incorrect Provision of Specified Functionality

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CWE-1245 Sibling

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CWE-392 Sibling

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CWE-393 Sibling

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CWE-440 Sibling

Expected Behavior Violation

This weakness occurs when a software component, such as a function, API, or feature, fails to act as documented or intended. The system's…

CWE-446 Sibling

UI Discrepancy for Security Feature

This vulnerability occurs when a user interface incorrectly displays a security feature as active or properly configured, misleading users…

CWE-912 Sibling

Hidden Functionality

Hidden functionality refers to undocumented features, commands, or code within a product that are not part of its official specification…

CWE-346 Peer

Origin Validation Error

This vulnerability occurs when an application fails to properly confirm the true origin of incoming data or communication, allowing…

CWE-1007 Child

Insufficient Visual Distinction of Homoglyphs Presented to User

This vulnerability occurs when an application shows text or symbols to users without clearly distinguishing between characters that look…

Resources

Further reading

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