diff --git a/cmake/bde_ufid.cmake b/cmake/bde_ufid.cmake
index 9663af48..fb83e59f 100644
--- a/cmake/bde_ufid.cmake
+++ b/cmake/bde_ufid.cmake
@@ -209,7 +209,8 @@ function(bde_parse_ufid UFID)
     elseif(${bde_ufid_is_dbg})
         set(build_type Debug)
     else()
-        message(FATAL_ERROR "The build type is not set in UFID: ${UFID}")
+        set(build_type Debug)
+        message(WARNING "The build type is not set in UFID: ${UFID}, Defaulting to Debug")
     endif()
 
     set(CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE ${build_type} CACHE STRING "Build type" FORCE)