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ForticlientemsApplication · Fortinet

CVE-2024-36506

MEDIUM · 5.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-01-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.2.5 or later.
See remediation →
62/100
Remediation priority · Elevated
Remotely reachable No privileges 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
An improper verification of source of a communication channel vulnerability [CWE-940] in FortiClientEMS 7.4.0, 7.2.0 through 7.2.4, 7.0 all versions, 6.4 all versions may allow a remote attacker to bypass the trusted host feature via session connection.

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

This FortiClientEMS vulnerability allows remote attackers to bypass the trusted host feature by improperly verifying the source of a session connection. The trusted host feature is designed to restrict access to specific IP addresses, but this flaw enables an attacker to potentially establish sessions from untrusted locations.

MitigationUpgrade FortiClientEMS to version 7.4.1 or later, which contains the fix for this vulnerability. As a compensating control, ensure strict network-level access restrictions are in place to limit which IP addresses can reach the EMS server.

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
ForticlientemsApplication
Affected:>= 6.4.0, < 7.2.5= 7.4.0
Forticlientems CloudApplication
Affected:>= 6.4.0, < 7.2.5= 7.4.0

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
Network
Complexity
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
None
Integrity
Low
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/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 FortiClientEMS version
    Log into the FortiClientEMS admin console and navigate to the Dashboard or System Settings to view the firmware version. Alternatively, check the About section or use the CLI command 'get system status' if available.
    Affected if The installed version is 6.4.0 through 7.2.4, or exactly 7.4.0. Versions 7.4.1 and later are not affected.
  2. Verify trusted host configuration
    In the FortiClientEMS admin console, go to System Settings > Admin > Administrator Settings or access the Trusted Hosts configuration panel. Check if any trusted IP addresses or networks are defined to restrict admin access.
    Affected if Trusted host restrictions are configured and the EMS version falls within the vulnerable range.
  3. Confirm network accessibility of EMS management interface
    From an external or untrusted network segment, attempt to reach the FortiClientEMS web interface or API endpoint on ports 443 or 8014. Use tools like nmap or curl to test connectivity from non-expected source IPs.
    Affected if The EMS management interface is reachable from networks outside the defined trusted host range, and the version is vulnerable.

A user is affected if FortiClientEMS is running version 6.4.0-7.2.4 or exactly 7.4.0, the trusted host feature is configured with specific IP restrictions, and the EMS interface is accessible from untrusted network locations.

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 7.2.5 or later
Fixed in 7.2.5
Interim mitigation

Upgrade FortiClientEMS to version 7.4.1 or later, which contains the fix for this vulnerability. As a compensating control, ensure strict network-level access restrictions are in place to limit which IP addresses can reach the EMS server.

Recommended fix High confidence

7.2.5 or later (avoid 7.4.0; if 7.4.x required, wait for 7.4.1+ fix)

  1. 1. Identify current FortiClientEMS version via admin console or CLI command: get system status
  2. 2. Review current configuration backup and ensure you have a rollback plan
  3. 3. Download FortiClientEMS version 7.2.5 or later from Fortinet support portal (fortinet.com/support)
  4. 4. Schedule maintenance window as upgrade may require service restart
  5. 5. Upload and install the upgrade via FortiClientEMS admin console or CLI: execute upgrade <image_file>
  6. 6. After upgrade, verify version: get system status
  7. 7. Reconfigure and verify trusted host settings under System > Administration > Trusted Hosts to ensure the vulnerability is mitigated
  8. 8. Test that the trusted host feature properly restricts access based on configured IP ranges
Caveat Review Fortinet release notes for 7.2.5 for any configuration or feature changes from your current version; test in non-production environment first

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

Fix this in Forticlientems Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation3.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing3.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
12.0 hours of engineering $2,130
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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-2024-36506 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