FortitesterApplication · Fortinet
CVE-2022-38372
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 · uneditedA hidden functionality vulnerability [CWE-1242] in FortiTester CLI 2.3.0 through 3.9.1, 4.0.0 through 4.2.0, 7.0.0 through 7.1.0 may allow a local, privileged user to obtain a root shell on the device via an undocumented command.
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 hidden functionality (CWE-1242) in FortiTester CLI allows a local, privileged user to execute an undocumented command that provides root shell access. This is effectively a backdoor present in versions 2.3.0-3.9.1, 4.0.0-4.2.0, and 7.0.0-7.1.0.
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
FortitesterApplication
>= 2.3.0, <= 3.9.1>= 4.0.0, <= 4.2.0= 7.0.0= 7.1.0CVSS 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
- Privileges
- High
- User interaction
- None
- Scope
- Unchanged
- Confidentiality
- High
- Integrity
- High
- Availability
- High
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:H/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
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.
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Identify FortiTester versionRun 'fortitester -v' or 'show version' in the CLI, or check the web UI under System > Settings > Firmware versionAffected if The installed version falls within 2.3.0-3.9.1, 4.0.0-4.2.0, 7.0.0, or 7.1.0
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Check for undocumented CLI commandsRun 'help' or '?' in the FortiTester CLI and look for commands not listed in official documentation, particularly those that invoke shell or execute system commandsAffected if Any undocumented command exists that provides shell access or executes arbitrary commands
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Inspect CLI command setUse 'show ?' or tab completion in the CLI to enumerate available commands and compare against official FortiTester CLI documentationAffected if Commands exist that are not documented but allow privilege escalation or shell access
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Verify shell access restrictionsAttempt to access the underlying Linux shell through the CLI using the undocumented command (if discovered) or by checking admin user capabilitiesAffected if A hidden or undocumented command successfully provides root-level shell access
A user is affected if FortiTester version is within 2.3.0-3.9.1, 4.0.0-4.2.0, 7.0.0, or 7.1.0 AND an undocumented CLI command exists that provides root shell access.
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 dataApply vendor-supplied patches/updates to upgrade FortiTester to a fixed version beyond 7.1.0; if patching is not immediately possible, monitor for unauthorized access to undocumented CLI commands and restrict administrative access.
Fix this in Fortitester
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation4.0 h
- Implementation8.0 h
- Testing4.0 h
- Review / QA2.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $5,120.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2022-38372 — 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-2022-38372 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
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- 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
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