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ForticlientApplication · Fortinet

CVE-2025-57716

HIGH · 7.3 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-10-14
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 7.2.12 / 7.4.4 or later.
See remediation →
73/100
Remediation priority · Elevated

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 Uncontrolled Search Path Element vulnerability [CWE-427] in FortiClient Windows 7.4.0 through 7.4.3, 7.2.0 through 7.2.11, 7.0 all versions may allow a local low privileged user to perform a DLL hijacking attack via placing a malicious DLL to the FortiClient Online Installer installation folder.

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

A DLL hijacking vulnerability (CWE-427) in FortiClient Windows versions 7.4.0-7.4.3, 7.2.0-7.2.11, and 7.0 allows a local low-privileged user to place a malicious DLL in the FortiClient Online Installer folder, which gets loaded by the application due to an uncontrolled search path element.

MitigationUpdate FortiClient to version 7.4.4, 7.2.12, or later per Fortinet's advisory. As a compensating control, restrict write permissions on the FortiClient installation directory to prevent unauthorized DLL placement.

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
ForticlientApplication
Affected:>= 7.0.0, < 7.2.12>= 7.4.0, < 7.4.4

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
Low
User interaction
Required
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
High
Availability
High

CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:R/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 FortiClient installation and version
    Open Registry Editor and navigate to HKLM\SOFTWARE\Fortinet\FortiClient or check C:\Program Files\Fortinet\FortiClient\version.ini. Also check Add/Remove Programs for FortiClient version.
    Affected if The installed version falls within 7.0.0 to 7.0.x, 7.2.0 to 7.2.11, or 7.4.0 to 7.4.3.
  2. Locate the FortiClient Online Installer folder
    Browse to the FortiClient installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\Fortinet\FortiClient\) and identify a subfolder related to online installer, updater, or similar functionality. Common paths include OnlineInstaller, FortiClientOnlineInstaller, or an updater folder.
    Affected if The Online Installer folder exists in the FortiClient installation directory.
  3. Verify folder write permissions for low-privileged users
    Right-click the identified Online Installer folder, go to Properties > Security tab. Check the permissions for Users or Authenticated Users group. Alternatively, run 'icacls "<folder_path>"' from Command Prompt to view effective permissions.
    Affected if Users or Authenticated Users group has WRITE or MODIFY permissions on the folder, allowing a low-privileged user to place files in it.

You are affected if FortiClient version is 7.0.0-7.0.x, 7.2.0-7.2.11, or 7.4.0-7.4.3 AND the Online Installer folder exists with write permissions for standard users.

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 7.2.12 / 7.4.4 or later
Fixed in 7.2.127.4.4
Interim mitigation

Update FortiClient to version 7.4.4, 7.2.12, or later per Fortinet's advisory. As a compensating control, restrict write permissions on the FortiClient installation directory to prevent unauthorized DLL placement.

Recommended fix High confidence

FortiClient 7.2.12 or 7.4.4 (depending on branch)

  1. Check current FortiClient version by opening FortiClient and navigating to Help > About
  2. Determine which version branch you are on (7.0.x, 7.2.x, or 7.4.x)
  3. If on 7.2.x branch: upgrade to FortiClient version 7.2.12
  4. If on 7.4.x branch: upgrade to FortiClient version 7.4.4
  5. If on 7.0.x branch: upgrade to either 7.2.12 or 7.4.4 (7.0.x has no fix available)
  6. Download the appropriate installer from Fortinet's official support portal (support.fortinet.com)
  7. Close FortiClient completely before running the upgrade installer
  8. Run the installer with administrator privileges and follow the prompts
Caveat Ensure compatibility with your FortiGate/FortiManager infrastructure before upgrading; test in non-production environment first

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

Fix this in Forticlient Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation2.0 h
  • Implementation4.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA1.0 h
9.0 hours of engineering $1,600
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $2,560.

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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-2025-57716 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