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FortinacApplication · Fortinet

CVE-2022-38376

MEDIUM · 6.1 CVSS v3.1 Published 2023-02-16
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 9.4.2 or later.
See remediation →
68/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges

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 · unedited
Multiple improper neutralization of input during web page generation ('Cross-site Scripting') vulnerabilities [CWE-79] in Fortinet FortiNAC portal UI before 9.4.1 allows an attacker to perform an XSS attack via crafted HTTP requests.

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 confidence

Multiple Cross-site Scripting (XSS) vulnerabilities in Fortinet FortiNAC portal UI versions before 9.4.1 allow attackers to inject malicious scripts through crafted HTTP requests. The vulnerabilities exist in the web portal's input handling where user-supplied data is insufficiently sanitized before being rendered in the browser.

MitigationUpgrade FortiNAC to version 9.4.1 or later to remediate the XSS vulnerabilities. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, consider restricting access to the portal to trusted users only.

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
FortinacApplication
Affected:>= 8.5.0, <= 8.5.4>= 8.6.0, < 9.4.2= 8.3.7

CVSS 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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
Required
Scope
Changed
Confidentiality
Low
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

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

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify FortiNAC version via CLI
    Log into the FortiNAC CLI and run the command: 'get system status' or 'show system version' to retrieve the installed firmware version.
    Affected if The displayed version falls within >= 8.5.0 and <= 8.5.4; or >= 8.6.0 and < 9.4.2; or equals 8.3.7.
  2. Check FortiNAC version via web UI
    Access the FortiNAC web portal login page, then navigate to System > Settings > General > Administration or check the dashboard for the firmware version displayed.
    Affected if The displayed version falls within the vulnerable ranges listed above.
  3. Verify web portal is accessible
    Attempt to reach the FortiNAC portal HTTP/HTTPS interface from a browser or via curl: 'curl -k https://<fortinac-ip>/' to confirm the portal is reachable.
    Affected if The portal responds and is accessible, meaning the XSS-prone interface can be reached.
  4. Confirm portal input fields exist
    Log into the FortiNAC portal and navigate to user-facing pages that accept input, such as the guest registration, device onboarding, or help desk ticket submission forms.
    Affected if The portal UI contains input fields where unsanitized user data could be rendered back in the browser.

A user is affected if their FortiNAC version is 8.3.7, between 8.5.0-8.5.4, or between 8.6.0-9.4.1, and the web portal interface is accessible and accepts user input.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 9.4.2 or later
Fixed in 9.4.2
Interim mitigation

Upgrade FortiNAC to version 9.4.1 or later to remediate the XSS vulnerabilities. If immediate upgrade is not feasible, consider restricting access to the portal to trusted users only.

Recommended fix High confidence

FortiNAC 9.4.2 or later (upgrade from affected versions 8.3.7, 8.5.0-8.5.4, 8.6.0-9.4.1)

  1. 1. Identify the current FortiNAC version by accessing the admin console or running 'fnac --version' or 'diagnose system version'
  2. 2. If the current version is 8.3.7, 8.5.0-8.5.4, or 8.6.0-9.4.1, plan for an upgrade
  3. 3. Backup the FortiNAC configuration using the web UI (System > Settings > Backup & Restore) or CLI 'execute backup full'
  4. 4. Schedule a maintenance window as upgrades may require downtime
  5. 5. Download the FortiNAC firmware 9.4.2 or later from Fortinet support portal (support.fortinet.com)
  6. 6. Upload the firmware via FortiNAC web UI (System > Firmware) or CLI 'execute system firmware upgrade <image>'
  7. 7. After upgrade, verify the version matches the fixed release and confirm the FortiNAC portal UI is functional
Caveat Review FortiNAC release notes for 9.4.2 for any configuration or feature changes; some UI paths or features may have been reorganized

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Fortinac Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
11.0 hours of engineering $1,930
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References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2022-38376 in production — separate from our analysis above.

No notes yet

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What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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