How severe is CVE-2022-40684?

CVE-2022-40684 has a CVSS score of 9.8/10, rated CRITICAL. Immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Which packages are affected by CVE-2022-40684?

Affected package information for CVE-2022-40684 is not yet fully mapped. Check the official advisory links for details.

How do I fix CVE-2022-40684?

No fixed version has been published for CVE-2022-40684 yet. Monitor the advisory for updates, apply mitigations recommended by the vendor, and use O3 Security to track when a fix becomes available in your stack.

Is CVE-2022-40684 actively exploited in the wild?

Yes. There are 36 known exploit references for CVE-2022-40684, including 2 documented proof-of-concept exploits on Exploit-DB and 21 in-the-wild exploitations observed on GitHub and other sources. Treat this as actively exploitable and prioritize patching immediately. All exploit code should only be run in an isolated sandbox environment for research or authorized testing — never against production systems without explicit written authorization.

What is the EPSS score for CVE-2022-40684?

CVE-2022-40684 has an EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) score of 94.4%, placing it in the 100th percentile of all CVEs. EPSS is maintained by FIRST.org and estimates the probability that a vulnerability will be exploited in the wild within the next 30 days. A score above 50% indicates significantly elevated exploitation risk — immediate patching is strongly recommended.

Is CVE-2022-40684 in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog?

Yes. CVE-2022-40684 (Fortinet Multiple Products Authentication Bypass Vulnerability) was added to CISA's Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog on 2022-10-11. CISA required all US federal civilian agencies to remediate this vulnerability by 2022-11-01. The required action was: Apply updates per vendor instructions. This CVE has been used in known ransomware campaigns. Being listed in the KEV catalog is the strongest possible confirmation of active exploitation — treat this as a critical priority.

What type of vulnerability is CVE-2022-40684?

CVE-2022-40684 is classified as Improper Authentication (CWE-287). This weakness type describe the underlying flaw category, which helps determine the potential impact and the right class of mitigation.

Which products and versions are affected by CVE-2022-40684?

CVE-2022-40684 affects fortinet fortios; fortinet fortiproxy (1 version, e.g. 7.2.0); fortinet fortiswitchmanager (2 versions, e.g. 7.0.0, 7.2.0). Check the affected-products list on this page against your deployed version to confirm exposure.

Is there exploit tooling available for CVE-2022-40684?

A Nuclei detection template exists for CVE-2022-40684, meaning automated scanners can fingerprint it. Public exploit tooling significantly increases real-world risk — prioritize patching and ensure detection coverage. Exploit tooling should only ever be used in isolated, authorized testing environments.

When was CVE-2022-40684 published, and has it been updated?

CVE-2022-40684 was published on October 18, 2022 and was last updated on January 14, 2026. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

CISA KEV·Added 2022-10-11 — agencies required to remediate by 2022-11-01 · Ransomware

CVE-2022-40684

CRITICAL

An authentication bypass using an alternate path or channel [CWE-288] in Fortinet FortiOS version 7.2.0 through 7.2.1 and 7.0.0 through 7.0.6, FortiProxy version 7.2.0 and version 7.0.0…

Published

Oct 18, 2022

Updated

Jan 14, 2026

Affected

0 pkgs

Patched

None yet

Exploits

36 known

EPSS Exploitation Probability

via FIRST.org ↗

94.4%probability of exploitation in next 30 days

Very High Risk100th percentile0.00%

EPSS (Exploit Prediction Scoring System) is a daily probability model maintained by FIRST.org. It estimates the likelihood a CVE will be exploited in production environments within the next 30 days, derived from real-world threat intelligence signals.

Description

An authentication bypass using an alternate path or channel [CWE-288] in Fortinet FortiOS version 7.2.0 through 7.2.1 and 7.0.0 through 7.0.6, FortiProxy version 7.2.0 and version 7.0.0 through 7.0.6 and FortiSwitchManager version 7.2.0 and 7.0.0 allows an unauthenticated atttacker to perform operations on the administrative interface via specially crafted HTTP or HTTPS requests.

Affected Products

3 products · 6 configurations

fortiosfortinet

≥ 7.2.0 && < 7.2.2

range

Application

fortiproxyfortinet

≥ 7.0.0 && < 7.0.7

1 version

7.2.0

Application

fortiswitchmanagerfortinet

2 versions

7.0.07.2.0

Exploits & PoCs

Research use only. For defensive security, authorized penetration testing, and academic research only. Never execute exploit code against systems without explicit written authorization.

EDB-51092webappsmultiple

FortiOS_ FortiProxy_ FortiSwitchManager v7.2.1 - Authentication Bypass

by Felipe Alcantara · Mar 27, 2023

Exploit-DB Source

EDB-52239remotewindows

Fortinet FortiOS_ FortiProxy_ and FortiSwitchManager 7.2.0 - Authentication bypass

by ub3rsick · Apr 16, 2025

Exploit-DB Source

Frequently Asked Questions

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

Is CVE-2022-40684 in your stack?

O3 detects CVE-2022-40684 across dependencies and uses function-level reachability to confirm whether the vulnerable code path is actually reachable — not just present. No false positives.

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