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CVE Record

CVE-2020-6648: A cleartext storage of sensitive information vulnerability in FortiOS command line interface in versions 6....

A cleartext storage of sensitive information vulnerability in FortiOS command line interface in versions 6.2.4 and earlier and FortiProxy 2.0.0, 1.2.9 and earlier may allow an authenticated attacker to obtain sensitive information such as users passwords by connecting to FortiGate CLI and executing the "diag sys ha checksum show" command.

MediumCVSS 5.3Not KEV-listedUpdated
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Glexia's TakeAutomated analysismoderate

Security readout for executives and security teams

Plain-English summary

This Fortinet issue can expose sensitive information, including user passwords, from the command line on affected FortiOS and FortiProxy versions. The business risk is credential disclosure from security infrastructure, especially where too many users have administrative or CLI access.

Executive priority

Treat this as a credential exposure risk on security appliances, not a broad remote takeover. Prioritize inventory and remediation where affected devices protect sensitive networks or have shared, weak, or widely granted administrator access.

Technical view

CVE-2020-6648 is cleartext storage/exposure of sensitive information in the FortiOS CLI for FortiOS 6.2.4 and earlier, and FortiProxy 2.0.0 and 1.2.9 and earlier. The bundle says an authenticated attacker can obtain sensitive data through a diagnostic CLI path. CVSS metadata conflicts by listing PR:N.

Likely exposure

Organizations using older FortiGate or FortiProxy deployments are the likely exposure group. Risk depends heavily on who can reach and authenticate to device CLI or administrative management interfaces.

Exploitation context

The provided bundle does not show CISA KEV listing or active exploitation evidence. Public evidence supports potential sensitive information disclosure, but not real-world exploitation. The attacker prerequisites are unclear because the description says authenticated access while the CVSS vector says no privileges required.

Researcher notes

The key uncertainty is attacker privilege. The narrative says authenticated CLI access is required, while the CVSS vector states PR:N. Do not assume unauthenticated exploitation without stronger evidence. Fixed versions are not included in the provided bundle, so rely on Fortinet PSIRT guidance.

Mitigation direction

  • Inventory FortiOS and FortiProxy versions against Fortinet PSIRT advisories.
  • Upgrade or remediate according to Fortinet’s current guidance for FG-IR-20-009 and FG-IR-20-236.
  • Restrict CLI and management access to trusted administrators and management networks.
  • Review administrator accounts and remove unnecessary CLI privileges.
  • Rotate exposed credentials if logs or access history suggest possible disclosure.

Validation and detection

  • Confirm whether any FortiOS device runs version 6.2.4 or earlier.
  • Confirm whether FortiProxy runs 2.0.0, 1.2.9, or earlier.
  • Review administrative access logs for unusual CLI activity.
  • Verify management interfaces are not broadly reachable.
  • Document the Fortinet advisory status and remediation decision.
Prepared
Confidence
medium
Sources
4

Public sources used

Generated from the cited source records. This long-tail analysis has not been individually reviewed by a named human.

Potential ATT&CK relevance

Conservative CVE-to-ATT&CK context

These mappings and lookup hints may be relevant to the vulnerability behavior, CWE, affected product, or exposure path. Glexia-inferred context is not an official MITRE, ATT&CK, CWE, or CVE Program mapping.

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CVE-2020-6648 mapping review

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Vulnerability profileCVE Program record
Severity
Medium
CVSS
5.3 (3.1)
Known Exploited
No
Published

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Official CVE source material

CNA and ADP enrichment extracted from CVE v5

These fields come from the CVE record and ADP containers, not from Glexia's Take. They preserve time-varying source decisions such as CISA SSVC, KEV status, CVSS metrics, and provider references.

1CVSS vectors
0Timeline events
0ADP providers
3Source links

CVSS vector scores

1 official score

We collect every scored CVSS vector available in the official CNA and ADP containers. When more than one version is present, the table keeps the source vectors side by side instead of collapsing them into the highest score.

ScoreVersionSeverityVectorExploitImpactSource
5.3CVSS 3.1MediumCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N3.91.4Primary CVE score

Vulnerability scoring details

Base CVSS 3.1 score

5.3Medium
CVSS 3.1 vector shape for CVE-2020-6648Attack VectorAttack ComplexityPrivileges RequiredUser InteractionScopeConfidentiality ImpactIntegrity ImpactAvailability Impact

Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:N/A:N

Attack Vector
NetworkAdjacentLocalPhysical
Attack Complexity
LowHigh
Privileges Required
NoneLowHigh
User Interaction
NoneRequired
Scope
ChangedUnchanged
Confidentiality Impact
HighLowNone
Integrity Impact
HighLowNone
Availability Impact
HighLowNone

Source materials

Affected products

Products and packages named in the record

VendorProductVersion / packageStatus
FortinetFortiGate and FortiProxyFortiOS versions 6.2.4 and earlier and FortiProxy 2.0.0, 1.2.9 and earlier.Listed
Weakness

CWE details

No CWE listed

CWE links open Glexia weakness intelligence pages with official CWE context, developer remediation guidance, and related CVE mappings.