What is CVE-2018-13379?
An Improper Limitation of a Pathname to a Restricted Directory ("Path Traversal") in Fortinet FortiOS 6.0.0 to 6.0.4, 5.6.3 to 5.6.7 and 5.4.6 to 5.4.12 and FortiProxy 2.0.0, 1.2.0 to 1.2.8, 1.1.0 to 1.1.6, 1.0.0 to 1.0.7 under SSL VPN web portal allows an unauthenticated attacker to download system files via special crafted HTTP resource requests.
The record classifies CVE-2018-13379 under weakness class CWE-22. Its CVSS v3 base vector states that the flaw is reachable remotely over the network, needs no prior authentication, needs no user interaction, and has high impact on confidentiality, availability. 3 affected-product entries are recorded, across 1 vendor, listed below. The identifier was first published 2703 days ago.
Severity and exploitation probability
- CVSS v3.1 base score
- 9.1 — CRITICAL
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:H - EPSS (FIRST)
- 99.9% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, higher than 99.9% of all scored CVEs
- CISA KEV
- Listed since 2021-11-03, federal remediation deadline 2022-05-03 — used in known ransomware campaigns
- Threadlinqs priority
- 10/10 — CISA lists it as used in ransomware, which Threadlinqs scores at the maximum
- Published
- 2019-06-04, last modified 2025-10-21
Is CVE-2018-13379 being exploited?
CISA added CVE-2018-13379 to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2021-11-03, which means the agency holds evidence of exploitation in the wild; US federal civilian agencies had to remediate it by 2022-05-03 under BOD 22-01. CISA flags the vulnerability as one used in known ransomware campaigns. Weaponised exploit code for CVE-2018-13379 is publicly available. 11 public proof-of-concept repositories are tracked for this identifier. A ProjectDiscovery Nuclei detection template exists (http/cves/2018/CVE-2018-13379.yaml). It currently carries a trending score of 55 in the Threadlinqs vulnerability feed.
- milo2012/CVE-2018-13379 (github)
- Blazz3/cve2018-13379-nmap-script (github)
- Zeop-CyberSec/fortios_vpnssl_traversal_leak (github)
- B1anda0/CVE-2018-13379 (github)
- 0xHunter/FortiOS-Credentials-Disclosure (github)
- k4nfr3/CVE-2018-13379-Fortinet (github)
- jpiechowka/at-doom-fortigate (github)
- Zierax/CVE-2018-13379 (github)
Affected products and versions
- Fortinet: Fortiproxy, Fortiproxy 2.0.0, Fortios
How to fix CVE-2018-13379
The record marks a vendor fix as available for CVE-2018-13379. Patch reference: https://www.fortiguard.com/psirt/FG-IR-18-384. Vendor advisory: https://fortiguard.com/advisory/FG-IR-18-384. Because CVE-2018-13379 is KEV-listed, US federal civilian agencies were required to apply the vendor fix, or stop using the product, by 2022-05-03. Apply the vendor fix referenced above to every affected product listed in this record, then confirm the running version against the vendor advisory.
Threat activity tracking CVE-2018-13379
6 tracked threats in the Threadlinqs corpus reference CVE-2018-13379, either in the campaign’s CVE list or as an indicator on the campaign record.
- LockBit 5.0 Ransomware Extortion Claim Against US Bank (U.S. Bancorp) — HIGH · 2026-08-21
- Proofpoint AI Era Ransomware Report: 37% of Paying Victims Face Repeat Extortion Demands — MEDIUM · 2026-07-22
- FortiBleed: Mass Credential Compromise Campaign Against Internet-Exposed Fortinet FortiGate Devices (86,644 Devices, 194 Countries) — CRITICAL · 2026-07-11
- FortiBleed Campaign: Mass FortiGate SSL VPN / Admin Credential Exposure Affecting ~73,932 Fortinet Firewalls Across 194 Countries — CRITICAL · 2026-06-13
- Static Tundra ICS Attacks on Polish Energy Infrastructure with DynoWiper — CRITICAL · 2026-02-02
- Static Tundra (Dragonfly/Energetic Bear) ICS Attacks on Polish Energy Infrastructure — CRITICAL · 2026-02-02
Sources
Enriched from CVE.org, FIRST EPSS, CISA KEV, public proof-of-concept repositories, ProjectDiscovery Nuclei. Last verified by Threadlinqs on .