CVE-2023-46712 in FortiPortal
Summary
by MITRE • 01/10/2024
A improper access control in Fortinet FortiPortal version 7.0.0 through 7.0.6, Fortinet FortiPortal version 7.2.0 through 7.2.1 allows attacker to escalate its privilege via specifically crafted HTTP requests.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 01/28/2024
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2023-46712 represents a critical improper access control flaw within Fortinet FortiPortal appliances across specific version ranges. This weakness stems from insufficient validation of authentication and authorization mechanisms within the web interface, allowing malicious actors to exploit crafted HTTP requests to elevate their privileges from standard user levels to administrative access. The affected versions include FortiPortal 7.0.0 through 7.0.6 and 7.2.0 through 7.2.1, indicating a broad impact across multiple release streams of this network security appliance. The vulnerability resides in the application layer where HTTP request processing fails to properly verify user permissions, creating an avenue for privilege escalation attacks.
The technical exploitation of this vulnerability occurs through carefully constructed HTTP requests that manipulate authentication tokens or session identifiers within the application's web interface. Attackers can leverage this flaw to bypass normal access controls that should restrict administrative functions to authorized personnel only. The improper access control mechanism allows unauthorized users to perform privileged operations such as modifying system configurations, accessing sensitive data, or creating new administrative accounts. This weakness directly maps to CWE-285, which specifically addresses improper authorization within software applications, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1078.1.001 for Valid Accounts and T1484.1 for Domain Controller Privilege Escalation. The vulnerability's exploitation pathway demonstrates how insufficient input validation and authentication checks can lead to complete system compromise.
The operational impact of CVE-2023-46712 extends beyond simple privilege escalation, as it fundamentally undermines the security posture of organizations relying on FortiPortal appliances for network access control and authentication services. When exploited, this vulnerability enables attackers to gain full administrative control over the affected appliances, potentially allowing them to manipulate network access policies, monitor user activities, and serve as a foothold for further attacks within the network infrastructure. Organizations may experience unauthorized access to protected network resources, data breaches, and complete compromise of the authentication and access control mechanisms that FortiPortal is designed to protect. The vulnerability's presence in multiple version streams suggests a systemic flaw in the authentication implementation that could affect numerous deployments across enterprise environments.
Organizations should immediately implement mitigations including applying the latest Fortinet security patches and firmware updates that address this specific access control weakness. Network segmentation and firewall rules should be configured to restrict direct access to FortiPortal web interfaces from untrusted networks, while implementing additional authentication layers such as multi-factor authentication to reduce the impact of potential exploitation. Regular security audits should verify that access controls are properly enforced and that administrative functions are restricted to authorized personnel only. Monitoring systems should be configured to detect unusual authentication patterns or privilege escalation attempts, while network traffic analysis can help identify malicious HTTP requests that may attempt to exploit this vulnerability. The remediation process should also include comprehensive security awareness training for administrators to recognize potential exploitation attempts and maintain proper access control policies throughout the organization's network infrastructure.