Fortinet FortiOS and FortiProxy Authentication Bypass Vulnerability

[ Why it matters ]Priority signals

• Exploited in the wild: on CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities list since 2025-03-18
• Known to be used in ransomware campaigns

[ Description ]Official description

An Authentication Bypass Using an Alternate Path or Channel vulnerability [CWE-288] affecting FortiOS 7.0.0 through 7.0.16 and FortiProxy 7.2.0 through 7.2.12, 7.0.0 through 7.0.19 may allow a remote unauthenticated attacker with prior knowledge of upstream and downstream devices serial numbers to gain super-admin privileges on the downstream device, if the Security Fabric is enabled, via crafted CSF proxy requests.

CISA: Fortinet FortiOS and FortiProxy contain an authentication bypass vulnerability that allows a remote attacker to gain super-admin privileges via crafted CSF proxy requests.

[ Fixes ]Fixes and patches

CISA required action (US federal deadline 8 Apr 2025): Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

No fix or interim patch is linked from our sources yet. Check the vendor references below and limit exposure of affected systems until a fix is available.

[ References ]References

• fortiguard.fortinet.com/psirt/FG-IR-24-535Vendor Advisory
• www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalogUS Government Resource