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FortiproxyApplication · Fortinet

CVE-2023-36640

MEDIUM · 6.7 CVSS v3.1 Published 2024-05-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 7.2.4 or later.
See remediation →
69/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Zero-click

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
A use of externally-controlled format string vulnerability in Fortinet FortiOS 7.4.0, FortiOS 7.2.0 through 7.2.5, FortiOS 7.0 all versions, FortiOS 6.4 all versions, FortiOS 6.2 all versions, FortiOS 6.0.0 through 6.0.16, FortiPAM 1.1.0, FortiPAM 1.0 all versions, FortiProxy 7.2.0 through 7.2.5, FortiProxy 7.0.0 through 7.0.11, FortiProxy 2.0 all versions, FortiProxy 1.2 all versions, FortiProxy 1.1 all versions, FortiProxy 1.0 all versions allows attacker to execute unauthorized code or commands via specially crafted commands

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 · high confidence

This is a format string vulnerability in Fortinet FortiOS, FortiPAM, and FortiProxy products where externally-controlled user input is passed to format string functions without proper sanitization. Attackers can exploit this by crafting malicious format specifiers (like %s, %x, %n) in commands to read stack memory, write to arbitrary memory locations, and potentially execute arbitrary code or commands on the affected device.

MitigationApply the vendor-released patches or upgrade to the fixed FortiOS/FortiProxy/FortiPAM versions as specified in Fortinet's security advisory. Additionally, limit administrative access to trusted sources and monitor for suspicious command patterns.

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
FortiproxyApplication
Affected:>= 1.0.0, <= 1.0.7>= 1.1.0, <= 1.1.6>= 1.2.0, <= 1.2.13>= 2.0.0, <= 2.0.14>= 7.0.0, <= 7.0.10>= 7.2.0, <= 7.2.4
FortipamOperating system
Affected:<= 1.0.3
FortiosOperating system
Affected:>= 6.0.0, <= 6.0.16>= 6.2.0, <= 6.2.16>= 6.4.0, <= 6.4.14>= 7.0.0, <= 7.0.12= 7.2.0

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
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 checks

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

  1. Identify the Fortinet product and version
    Run the CLI command 'get system status' or 'show system status' to retrieve the product name (FortiOS, FortiProxy, or FortiPAM) and firmware version
    Affected if The product is FortiProxy, FortiPAM, or FortiOS and the version matches one of the vulnerable ranges listed in the advisory
  2. Check FortiProxy version against affected ranges
    If the product is FortiProxy, compare the installed version to these ranges: 1.0.0-1.0.7, 1.1.0-1.1.6, 1.2.0-1.2.13, 2.0.0-2.0.14, 7.0.0-7.0.10, 7.2.0-7.2.4
    Affected if The version falls within any of these ranges, the device is affected
  3. Check FortiPAM version against affected ranges
    If the product is FortiPAM, compare the installed version to <= 1.0.3
    Affected if The version is 1.0.3 or lower, the device is affected
  4. Check FortiOS version against affected ranges
    If the product is FortiOS, compare the installed version to these ranges: 6.0.0-6.0.16, 6.2.0-6.2.16, 6.4.0-6.4.14, 7.0.0-7.0.12, 7.2.0
    Affected if The version falls within any of these ranges, the device is affected

If the device runs FortiProxy, FortiPAM, or FortiOS and the installed version matches any of the vulnerable version ranges, the environment is affected by this format string vulnerability.

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 a release after 7.2.4
Interim mitigation

Apply the vendor-released patches or upgrade to the fixed FortiOS/FortiProxy/FortiPAM versions as specified in Fortinet's security advisory. Additionally, limit administrative access to trusted sources and monitor for suspicious command patterns.

Recommended fix Moderate confidence

Upgrade to the next available patch version above your current affected version (e.g., FortiOS 7.0.13+, FortiOS 7.2.6+, FortiProxy 2.0.15+, FortiPAM 1.0.4+)

  1. 1. Identify the exact Fortinet product (FortiOS, FortiProxy, or FortiPAM) and current version installed in your environment
  2. 2. For FortiOS 6.0.x: Upgrade to version 6.0.17 or later
  3. 3. For FortiOS 6.2.x: Upgrade to version 6.2.17 or later
  4. 4. For FortiOS 6.4.x: Upgrade to version 6.4.15 or later
  5. 5. For FortiOS 7.0.x: Upgrade to version 7.0.13 or later
  6. 6. For FortiOS 7.2.x: Upgrade to version 7.2.6 or later
  7. 7. For FortiOS 7.4.x: Upgrade to version 7.4.1 or later
  8. 8. For FortiProxy 1.0.x: Upgrade to version 1.0.8 or later
Caveat Review Fortinet release notes for your specific upgrade path as minor version jumps may introduce behavioral changes; test in staging environment before production deployment

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

Fix this in Fortiproxy Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing12.0 h
  • Review / QA6.0 h
30.0 hours of engineering $5,120
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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-2023-36640 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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