Cyber Resilience

CVE-2024-52961

RCE in Fortinet Fortisandbox 3.0.0 – 4.0.6

Published
11 March 2025
Modified
14 January 2026
Patch / advisory
CVSS Score v3.1 8.8
Click a component to see what it means
Raw vectorCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H
EPSS Score 0.0053 42th percentile
Risk Priority 64 floored blend · peak EPSS

Summary

CVE-2024-52961 is a high-severity OS Command Injection (CWE-78) vulnerability in Fortinet Fortisandbox. Its CVSS base score is 8.8 (High).

Operationally, exploitation aligns with the MITRE ATT&CK technique Command and Scripting Interpreter (T1059); ranked at the 42th percentile by exploit likelihood (below the median); it is not currently listed in the CISA KEV catalog.

The strongest mitigations our analysis identified map to SA-11 (Developer Testing and Evaluation) and SI-10 (Information Input Validation) — see the control section below for these in your framework.

Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary

Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.

CVE-2024-52961 is an improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS Command vulnerability (CWE-78) affecting multiple versions of Fortinet FortiSandbox, including version 5.0.0, 4.4.0 through 4.4.6, 4.2.1 through 4.2.7, 4.0.0 through 4.0.5, and all versions of 3.2, 3.1, and 3.0. This flaw allows an authenticated attacker with at least read-only permissions to execute unauthorized commands through crafted requests. The vulnerability carries a CVSS v3.1 base score of 8.8 (AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H), indicating high severity due to its potential for complete system compromise.

An attacker requires valid credentials with read-only access to the FortiSandbox management interface, which can be exploited remotely over the network with low complexity and no user interaction. Successful exploitation enables arbitrary command execution on the underlying operating system, potentially granting full control over the sandbox appliance, including data exfiltration, persistence, or lateral movement within the environment.

Fortinet has published advisory FG-IR-24-306 at https://fortiguard.fortinet.com/psirt/FG-IR-24-306, which provides details on affected versions and recommended mitigations, including available patches. Security practitioners should consult this advisory for upgrade paths and workarounds.

OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)

EU & UK References

Vulnerability Data

An improper neutralization of special elements used in an OS Command vulnerability [CWE-78] vulnerability in Fortinet FortiSandbox 5.0.0, FortiSandbox 4.4.0 through 4.4.6, FortiSandbox 4.2.1 through 4.2.7, FortiSandbox 4.0.0 through 4.0.5, FortiSandbox 3.2 all versions, FortiSandbox 3.1 all versions, FortiSandbox 3.0…

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all versions allows an authenticated attacker with at least read-only permission to execute unauthorized commands via crafted requests.

CWE(s)

Related Threats

MITRE ATT&CK Enterprise Techniques

T1059 Command and Scripting Interpreter Execution
Adversaries may abuse command and script interpreters to execute commands, scripts, or binaries.
T1059.003 Windows Command Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse the Windows command shell for execution.
T1059.004 Unix Shell Execution
Adversaries may abuse Unix shell commands and scripts for execution.
T1059.001 PowerShell Execution
Adversaries may abuse PowerShell commands and scripts for execution.
T1190 Exploit Public-Facing Application Initial Access
Adversaries may attempt to exploit a weakness in an Internet-facing host or system to initially access a network.
Derived from this CVE’s CWE(s) via the direct CWE→ATT&CK cross-walk.

CVEs Like This One

CVE-2025-53949Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2026-39808Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2024-21755Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2023-47540Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2024-21756Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2024-27778Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2024-54018Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2025-53679Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2026-25089Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox
CVE-2024-31491Same product: Fortinet Fortisandbox

Affected Assets

fortinet
fortisandbox
5.0.0 · 3.0.0 — 4.0.6 · 4.2.0 — 4.2.8 · 4.4.0 — 4.4.7

Mitigating Controls

Control response

Prevent
Stop it (NIST 800-53)

Detect
Catch it (NIST detect / respond)

Harden
Shrink the surface (DISA STIG)

Validate
Prove the fix (OWASP ASVS)
  • V1.2.5
  • V1.2.8
  • V15.2.5

Mitigating Controls (NIST 800-53 r5) AI

Developer testing and evaluation can discover missing or incorrect command sanitization during development.

Input validation directly neutralizes or rejects special characters that would otherwise alter OS command structure.

Least privilege reduces the permissions available to any process that could be subverted by injected commands.

Least functionality restricts available OS commands and interpreters, limiting the blast radius of injection.

Secure engineering principles require proper neutralization of untrusted input before command construction.

Mitigating Controls (NIST CSF 2.0) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→CSF cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

PR.PS-06 mostly match
prevents

PR.PS-06's SDLC practices directly require secure coding and input handling that blocks command-injection defects, yet the single broad outcome leaves many specific neutralization vectors and verification gaps unaddressed.

PR.PS-02 partial match
prevents

Routine patching/maintenance can remediate known command-injection CVEs in dependencies (partial forward) but does nothing to stop developers from introducing improper neutralization in custom code (none reverse).

Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI

Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.

finds

Security testing and code review target insecure use of operating-system command interfaces, catching command-injection flaws introduced during development.

References