ForticlientHardware / appliance · Fortinet
CVE-2009-1262
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedFormat string vulnerability in Fortinet FortiClient 3.0.614, and possibly earlier, allows local users to execute arbitrary code via format string specifiers in the VPN connection name.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceA format string vulnerability exists in Fortinet FortiClient 3.0.614 (and earlier versions) where user-supplied input from the VPN connection name field is passed directly to a format string function (e.g., printf, sprintf) without proper sanitization. This allows a local attacker to inject format string specifiers (like %s, %x, %n) to read from or write to arbitrary memory locations, potentially achieving arbitrary code execution with the privileges of the FortiClient process.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
ForticlientHardware / appliance
= 3.0.614CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Identify FortiClient versionOpen FortiClient application and navigate to Help > About, or check the installed version via Windows Programs and Features. Compare the version number to 3.0.614 or earlier.Affected if The installed version is 3.0.614 or any earlier version of FortiClient.
-
Locate VPN configuration filesNavigate to the FortiClient installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Fortinet\FortiClient\) and look for configuration files related to VPN connections, often stored with .xml or .conf extensions in user profile folders or the program data directory.Affected if VPN configuration files exist and contain stored connection profiles.
-
Inspect VPN connection name fieldOpen FortiClient VPN settings and examine any configured VPN connection profiles. Locate the connection name field for each profile.Affected if A VPN connection name contains format string specifiers such as %s, %x, %n, %p, or other %-based sequences.
-
Check for recent FortiClient process behaviorMonitor or review any available logs for the FortiClient process (fcapp.exe or related processes) for errors or crashes related to format string handling when VPN connections are initiated.Affected if The FortiClient process exhibits crashes or anomalous behavior when VPN connection names are processed.
You are affected if FortiClient version is 3.0.614 or earlier AND a VPN connection profile with a potentially malicious connection name exists on the system.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataThe primary remediation is to upgrade FortiClient to a patched version that properly validates or sanitizes the VPN connection name input before using it in format string functions. If upgrading is not immediately feasible, input validation should be implemented to reject or escape format string specifiers in the connection name field.
Fix this in Forticlient
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing6.0 h
- Review / QA4.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2009-1262 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2009-1262 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data