FortiWLM - Path Traversal (CVE-2023-34990)

CVE-2023-34990 is a relative path traversal vulnerability in Fortinet FortiWLM versions 8.6.0 through 8.6.5 and 8.5.0 through 8.5.4 which allows attackers to execute unauthorized code or commands by sending specially crafted web requests. This remote code execution flaw could be exploited to gain control over the affected system, potentially leading to data breaches or further network compromise.

CrowdSec has been tracking this vulnerability and its exploits since 17th of June 2025.

Based on data from the CrowdSec network, nearly all observed exploitation of CVE-2023-34990 is fully opportunistic, with attackers indiscriminately scanning the entire internet. These attacks are automated and lack any form of target selection or reconnaissance. Data from the CrowdSec community also indicates a gradual decrease in attacks targeting CVE-2023-34990. While still present in the wild, exploitation levels have dropped noticeably week-over-week. This may signal that the vulnerability is becoming less relevant or that defenses are improving fast enough for attackers to lose interest.

Attackers exploit the /ems/cgi-bin/ezrf_lighttpd.cgi endpoint by abusing the imagename parameter with directory traversal sequences to access sensitive files on FortiWLM systems.