CVE-2021-44168 — Fortinet FortiOS Arbitrary File Download

A download of code without integrity check vulnerability in the "execute restore src-vis" command of FortiOS before 7.0.3 may allow a local authenticated attacker to download arbitrary files on the device via specially crafted update packages.

01What is this vulnerability?

A download of code without integrity check vulnerability in the "execute restore src-vis" command of FortiOS before 7.0.3 may allow a local authenticated attacker to download arbitrary files on the device via specially crafted update packages.

02Affected products

03Active exploitation status

Yes — actively exploited. Added to the CISA KEV catalog on 2021-12-10. Ransomware use: Unknown.

04Recommended remediation

• Patch to a fixed version listed in the vendor advisory (see references below).
• Mitigate with WAF rules, network egress filters, or feature flags where the patch is not yet available.
• Hunt historical logs for exploitation indicators — see Detection signatures below.

05Technical details

For the full vendor write-up, exploit chains, and reference implementations, see the references list in section 09.

06Detection signatures

Open the Sigma generator with a pre-filled prompt for this CVE to draft a starting detection in your stack of choice:

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07Related CVEs

No directly-cited follow-up CVEs in the KB record for this advisory. The references list in section 09 carries the vendor cross-references.

08Timeline

• Published: 2022-01-04T12:38:04.000Z
• Last modified: 2025-10-21T23:15:50.019Z
• Added to CISA KEV: 2021-12-10
• BOD 22-01 due: 2021-12-24

09References

• fortiguard.com — https://fortiguard.com/psirt/FG-IR-21-201