# CVE-2021-31608: Security feature bypass in n/a

> Attackers can bypass security controls in Proofpoint Enterprise Protection, potentially allowing malicious content to pass through the gateway.

- **Severity:** Medium 4.3 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:N`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** A user has to click or open something
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 17 Nov 2022
- **Updated:** 30 Apr 2025
- **Also known as:** GHSA-wr5x-h3hw-v3xg

## What is CVE-2021-31608?

CVE-2021-31608 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 17 Nov 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.

### Official description

Proofpoint Enterprise Protection before 18.8.0 allows a Bypass of a Security Control.

Weakness: CWE-693 (Protection Mechanism Failure)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2021-31608?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Proofpoint Enterprise Protection.

## How do I fix CVE-2021-31608?

No fix has been published for CVE-2021-31608 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2021-31608 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-31608 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2023-0090](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-0090/): Proofpoint Enterprise Protection webservices unauthenticated RCE (critical 9.8)
- [CVE-2022-46332](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-46332/): Proofpoint Enterprise Protection (PPS/PoD) XSS in "Attachment Names" (critical 9.6)
- [CVE-2023-0089](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-0089/): Proofpoint Enterprise Protection webutils authenticated RCE (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2019-19680](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-19680/): Security feature bypass in n/a (high 8.8)
- [CVE-2022-46334](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-46334/): Proofpoint Enterprise Protection Local Privilege Escalation (high 7.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2021-31608 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2021-31608 is a medium-severity vulnerability in n/a, published on 17 Nov 2022. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, and only if a user opens a file or follows a link.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2021-31608 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31608/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31608/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2021-31608
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2021-31608
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2021-31608

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-31608/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.