CVE-2022-42475

CRITICAL KEV RANSOMWARE NUCLEI

FortiOS 5.0.0-5.0.13 and FortiProxy 1.0.0-1.0.6 - Heap-Based Buffer Overflow via SSL-VPN Requests

Title source: llm
STIX 2.1

Exploitation Summary

CVE-2022-42475 is actively exploited and listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, added December 13, 2022, with confirmed use in ransomware campaigns. EIP tracks 10 public exploits from researchers including scrt, 0xhaggis, P4x1s. A Nuclei detection template is also available.

AI-analyzed exploit summary This PoC exploits a heap overflow in Fortinet's SSLVPN daemon (CVE-2022-42475) to achieve remote code execution via a crafted ROP chain. It sends a malicious HTTP POST request with a large payload to trigger the vulnerability and execute a reverse shell.

Description

A heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability [CWE-122] in FortiOS SSL-VPN 7.2.0 through 7.2.2, 7.0.0 through 7.0.8, 6.4.0 through 6.4.10, 6.2.0 through 6.2.11, 6.0.15 and earlier and FortiProxy SSL-VPN 7.2.0 through 7.2.1, 7.0.7 and earlier may allow a remote unauthenticated attacker to execute arbitrary code or commands via specifically crafted requests.

Exploits (10)

nomisec WORKING POC 105 stars
by scrt · dos
https://github.com/scrt/cve-2022-42475

This PoC exploits a heap overflow in Fortinet's SSLVPN daemon (CVE-2022-42475) to achieve remote code execution via a crafted ROP chain. It sends a malicious HTTP POST request with a large payload to trigger the vulnerability and execute a reverse shell.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Racy
Target: Fortinet SSLVPN daemon
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target SSLVPN service · Python environment with `pwntools` and `requests` libraries
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 36 stars
by 0xhaggis · remote
https://github.com/0xhaggis/CVE-2022-42475

This is a functional exploit for CVE-2022-42475, a heap-based buffer overflow in Fortinet SSL-VPN. It leverages ROP chains and a connect-back shellcode to achieve remote code execution on vulnerable FortiGate devices.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet FortiGate SSL-VPN (versions affected by CVE-2022-42475)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the SSL-VPN interface · Vulnerable FortiGate firmware version
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 8 stars
by P4x1s · poc
https://github.com/P4x1s/CVE-2022-42475-RCE-POC

This PoC exploits CVE-2022-42475, a buffer overflow vulnerability in Fortinet SSL VPN (sslvpnd), to achieve remote code execution (RCE) via a crafted payload sent over SSL. The exploit constructs a ROP chain to execute a reverse shell using Python.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: FortiOS (2.0 <= FortiOS <= 7.2.2, 0.0 <= FortiOS <= 7.0.8, etc.)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target's SSL VPN service · Python environment with required libraries (pwntools, requests)
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 7 stars
by Amir-hy · remote
https://github.com/Amir-hy/cve-2022-42475

This is a Python-based exploit for CVE-2022-42475, a heap overflow vulnerability in Fortinet's SSL-VPN daemon. It constructs a ROP chain to achieve remote code execution by sending a maliciously crafted POST request to the target.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Racy
Target: FortiOS SSL-VPN daemon
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target's SSL-VPN interface · Python environment with required libraries (e.g., pwntools)
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec SCANNER 1 stars
by bryanster · poc
https://github.com/bryanster/ioc-cve-2022-42475

This repository provides a Rust-based utility to scan Fortinet FortiGate devices for indicators of compromise (IOCs) related to CVE-2022-42475. It uses SSH to execute diagnostic commands and checks for specific files, strings, and IPs associated with the vulnerability.

Classification
Scanner 95%
Attack Type
Info Leak
Complexity
Moderate
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet FortiGate (versions affected by CVE-2022-42475)
Auth required
Prerequisites: SSH access to the target FortiGate device · Valid SSH credentials
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC 1 stars
by Mustafa1986 · remote
https://github.com/Mustafa1986/cve-2022-42475-Fortinet

This PoC exploits a heap overflow in Fortinet's SSLVPN daemon (CVE-2022-42475) to achieve remote code execution via a crafted ROP chain and reverse shell payload. It leverages hardcoded gadgets and a Python-based reverse shell to execute arbitrary commands on the target system.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet SSLVPN daemon
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to vulnerable Fortinet SSLVPN service · Listener set up on attacker's machine for reverse shell
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
github WORKING POC
by dyeat · pythonpoc
https://github.com/dyeat/cve-reproduction/tree/main/Fortinet/FortiOS/CVE-2022-42475

This repository contains a functional exploit for CVE-2022-42475, a heap-based buffer overflow in Fortinet FortiOS SSL-VPN service. The exploit leverages ROP chains and a reverse shell payload to achieve pre-authentication remote code execution.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet FortiOS SSL-VPN service
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Target IP and port · Reverse shell listener address
devstral-2 · analyzed May 22, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by ArthurHendrich · remote
https://github.com/ArthurHendrich/CVE-2022-42475-POC

This repository contains a functional exploit for CVE-2022-42475, a heap-based buffer overflow vulnerability in Fortinet SSL VPN. The exploit leverages an integer overflow in the Content-Length header to achieve remote code execution (RCE) via a crafted HTTP request with a ROP chain and shellcode.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet SSL VPN (FortiOS)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the vulnerable SSL VPN interface · Knowledge of target hardware/software version for ROP chain compatibility
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 28, 2026 Full analysis →
nomisec WORKING POC
by natceil · remote
https://github.com/natceil/cve-2022-42475

This PoC exploits CVE-2022-42475, a buffer overflow vulnerability in Fortinet FortiOS SSL-VPN, to achieve remote code execution (RCE) via a crafted HTTP POST request. The exploit constructs a ROP chain to execute a reverse shell payload.

Classification
Working Poc 90%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: Fortinet FortiOS SSL-VPN
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target SSL-VPN service · Python environment with required libraries (pwntools, requests)
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 16, 2026 Full analysis →
vulncheck_xdb WORKING POC
remote
https://github.com/AiK1d/CVE-2022-42475-RCE-POC

This repository contains a functional exploit for CVE-2022-42475, a buffer overflow vulnerability in Fortinet SSL VPN (sslvpnd) that allows unauthenticated remote code execution. The exploit constructs a ROP chain to execute a reverse shell payload via a crafted HTTP POST request.

Classification
Working Poc 95%
Attack Type
Rce
Complexity
Complex
Reliability
Reliable
Target: FortiOS (sslvpnd)
No auth needed
Prerequisites: Network access to the target SSL VPN service · Known target host and port · Reverse shell listener setup
devstral-2 · analyzed Feb 25, 2026 Full analysis →

Nuclei Templates (1)

Fortinet SSL-VPN - Heap-Based Buffer Overflow
CRITICALby 0xhaggis,pszyszkowski,pussycat0x
Shodan: cpe:"cpe:2.3:o:fortinet:fortios" || http.html:"/remote/login" "xxxxxxxx" || http.favicon.hash:"945408572"
FOFA: body="/remote/login" "xxxxxxxx" || icon_hash="945408572"

References (2)

Core 2

Scores

CVSS v3 9.8
EPSS 0.9392
EPSS Percentile 99.9%
Attack Vector NETWORK
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H

CISA SSVC

Vulnrichment
Exploitation active
Automatable yes
Technical Impact total

Details

CISA KEV 2022-12-13
VulnCheck KEV 2022-12-12
InTheWild.io 2022-12-12
ENISA EUVD EUVD-2022-45545
Ransomware Use Confirmed
CWE
CWE-197 CWE-787
Status published
Products (2)
fortinet/fortios 5.0.0 - 5.0.14
fortinet/fortiproxy 1.0.0 - 1.0.7
Published Jan 02, 2023
KEV Added Dec 13, 2022
Tracked Since Feb 18, 2026