Skip to content
Noroxi
CVE-2022-40684· NVD / CVE Program· CNA fortinet

An authentication bypass using an alternate path or channel [CWE-288] in Fortinet FortiOS version 7.2.0 through 7.2.1 and 7.0.0 through 7.0.

An authentication bypass using an alternate path or channel [CWE-288] in Fortinet FortiOS version 7.2.0 through 7.2.1 and 7.0.0 through 7.0.6, FortiProxy version 7.2.0 and version 7.0.0 through 7.0.6 and FortiSwitchManager version 7.2.0 and 7.0.0 allows an unauthenticated atttacker to perform operations on the administrative interface via specially crafted HTTP or HTTPS requests.

CriticalCVSS 9.8 · v3.1KEVWeaponized No fix recorded
Published
Oct 18, 2022
Updated
Aug 6, 2026
EPSS
100.0% · 100th percentile
Follow this CVE

Sign in to follow · You’ll be notified if a followed record enters KEV, gets an exploit or is updated.

Report tools

JSON

Action score

99

Now

Patch today or shut off access.

CVSS
39 / 40 · 9.8 / 10
CISA KEV
30 / 30 · Listed
EPSS
30 / 30 · 100.0%

CISA SSVC decision

Exploitation
active
Automatable
yes
Technical impact
total

Vulnrichment: CISA's decision-tree inputs.

CNA vs NVD score

NVD
9.8
CNA · fortinet
9.8
agree

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H/E:F/RL:U/RC:C

The score given by the assigning authority versus NVD’s independent score. A gap means the severity is contested.

Actively exploited in the wild

CISA added this to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on Oct 11, 2022. That signals real attacks, not theory.

Remediation deadline for government agencies: Nov 1, 2022.

Known to be used in ransomware campaigns.

Affected systems

VendorProduct
fortinetfortiproxy
fortinetfortiswitchmanager
fortinetfortios

Affected versions

NVD version ranges (for catalog products). Add the product to your stack with a version and matching uses these.

  • fortinet fortios7.0.0 and later · before 7.0.7
  • fortinet fortios7.2.0 and later · before 7.2.2

Versions reported by the vendor

Affected version ranges reported by the assigning authority (fortinet). Independent of NVD's CPE analysis and usually ahead of it.

  • Fortinet Fortinet FortiOS, FortiProxy, FortiSwitchManager

    • FortiOS 7.2.1, 7.2.0, 7.0.6, 7.0.5, 7.0.4, 7.0.3, 7.0.2, 7.0.1, 7.0.0; FortiProxy 7.2.0, 7.0.6, 7.0.5, 7.0.4, 7.0.3, 7.0.2, 7.0.1, 7.0.0; FortiSwitchManager 7.2.0, 7.0.0affected

Same product

fortinet: all records

Other highest-scoring records for the same primary product.

  • CVE-2018-13379An Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ("Path Traversal") in Fortinet FortiOS 6.0.0 to 6.0.4, 5.6.3 to 5.6.7 and 5.4KEV
    99Now
  • CVE-2024-55591An Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel vulnerability [CWE-288] affecting FortiOS version 7.0.0 through 7.0.16 and FortiKEV
    97Now
  • CVE-2023-27997A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability [CWE-122] in FortiOS version 7.2.4 and below, version 7.0.11 and below, version 6.4.12 and below,KEV
    95Now
  • CVE-2024-21762A out-of-bounds write in Fortinet FortiOS versions 7.4.0 through 7.4.2, 7.2.0 through 7.2.6, 7.0.0 through 7.0.13, 6.4.0 through 6.4.14, 6.2KEV
    94Now
  • CVE-2025-59718A improper verification of cryptographic signature vulnerability in Fortinet FortiOS 7.6.0 through 7.6.3, FortiOS 7.4.0 through 7.4.8, FortiKEV
    89Now
  • CVE-2024-23113A use of externally-controlled format string in Fortinet FortiOS versions 7.4.0 through 7.4.2, 7.2.0 through 7.2.6, 7.0.0 through 7.0.13, FoKEV
    88Now

Remediation

Which version to upgrade to

Fix versions compiled from the vendor, package registries and Microsoft. Verify the vendor's note before upgrading.

No fix version is recorded for this entry. Check the references for vendor advisories.

Exploit status

Weaponized

A ready exploit tool or active in-the-wild use is known for this vulnerability. This should be your top priority.

Evidence

  • Metasploit module ×1
  • Exploit-DB entry ×2
  • Nuclei detection template ×1
  • Proof-of-concept repository on GitHub ×30

Noroxi does not host or link to exploit code. Metasploit module names and Nuclei template ids are shown (names, not code); Exploit-DB entries and PoC repositories are given as counts only.

Public exploit evidence
SourceKindDate
Exploit-DB entrywebapps2023-03-27
Exploit-DB entryremote2025-04-16
Metasploit moduleexploit/linux/http/fortinet_authentication_bypass_cve_2022_40684Fortinet FortiOS, FortiProxy, and FortiSwitchManager authentication bypass.exploit2022-10-10
Nuclei detection templateNuclei template CVE-2022-40684 —
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:112022-10-28
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02023-01-17
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:02023-01-28
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:3582022-10-13
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:872022-10-13
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:162022-10-13
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:162022-10-13
Proof-of-concept repository on GitHubstars:52022-10-14

Research context

For pentesters and researchers: attack profile, score disagreement, timeline, patch commits, credits, variant and chain candidates, bug bounty scope. All derived from existing data; no exploit code.

Timeline

From publication to today: proof of concept, Metasploit module, CISA KEV and fix record. Dates are as reported by the sources.

  1. Metasploit-8 d
  2. CISA KEV-7 d
  3. First PoC-5 d
  4. Published
  5. TodaySep 29, 2026+1443 d
EPSS, last 120 days

FIRST EPSS daily score; only changes of 0.01 or more are recorded (step chart).

Patch and commit links

Commit, PR and diff links among the references. A starting point for patch-diffing and variant hunting; fixes, not exploits.

No commit or PR link among the references.

Credits

All researchers

Finders, reporters and analysts named in the CNA record. Click a name for that researcher’s other records.

No credits in the CNA record.

Variant candidates

Same product, same weakness class, within 18 months. If the patch missed the root cause, the sibling bug is here.

—

Chain candidates

An authentication bypass and a privilege-requiring bug in the same product, published close together: combined they may become an unauthenticated path.

  • CVE-2022-42476140 days apartA relative path traversal vulnerability [CWE-23] in Fortinet FortiOS version 7.2.0 through 7.2.2, 7.0.0 through 7.0.8 and before 6.4.11, For
    32Monitor

Bug bounty scope

No known public program.

Source: bounty-targets-data (public HackerOne, Bugcrowd, Intigriti, YesWeHack listings).

Technical details

Attack conditions

  • Anyone who can reach it over the internet can trigger it.
  • No account or password is required.
  • No user action is required.
  • No special conditions are required; it is repeatable.

If successful

Confidentiality
high · data can be read
Integrity
high · data or configuration can be modified
Availability
high · the service can be disrupted
Attack vector
Network
Attack complexity
Low
Privileges required
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality impact
High
Integrity impact
High
Availability impact
High

Weakness class (CWE)

CWE-287 · Improper Authentication

CVSS vector

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

nvd-primary

Root cause

Authentication is added route by route instead of being enforced in one place. When a route added later bypasses the shared middleware, the session check never runs for it.

The bug in code

The whole CWE-287 class

A representative example of this vulnerability class. Not the vendor's source code; it shows the faulty pattern and its fix.

Vulnerable

ts
app.use("/admin", requireSession, adminRouter);
// Route added later skips the middlewareapp.post("/admin-api/config", updateConfig);

Fixed

ts
const admin = express.Router();admin.use(requireSession, requireRole("admin"));
admin.post("/config", updateConfig);app.use("/admin", admin);

Attack context

MITRE CAPEC attack patterns and ATT&CK techniques for this weakness class (CWE). A starting point for detection rules and threat hunting.

Noroxi analysis

No Noroxi analysis for this record yet

We don't hand-write analysis for all 385,000+ vulnerabilities; that wouldn't be honest. For notable, high-impact vulnerabilities our team writes the mechanism, detection and remediation steps.

We use this product, ask for help

Change log

No changes recorded on tracked fields yet. Score, KEV, exploit maturity and fix status changes appear here.

References

Vendor advisories and official records. Exploit/PoC links are deliberately left out.

All records