Elexon, a middleman in the UK power grid network hit by cyber

CVE-2018-13379 is a path traversal flaw (CWE-22) in the Fortinet FortiOS SSL VPN web portal that allows an unauthenticated attacker to download FortiOS system files via specially crafted HTTP resource requests. By traversing directories through crafted requests to the exposed web portal, the attacker can retrieve sensitive files, a technique publicly documented as yielding the SSL VPN session file containing usernames and passwords in plaintext. Any organization running the SSL VPN web portal on a FortiGate appliance is affected, and risk is highest where the portal is directly reachable from the internet. The flaw is confirmed in the wild: it was added to the CISA KEV catalog on 2021-11-03 with known ransomware use, and EPSS assigns it a 100% probability of exploitation within 30 days. No public PoC is listed in the provided data, but credential theft tied to this bug has been widely reused by threat actors.

Do: Apply the patched FortiOS release per Fortinet's vendor advisory immediately, as this is a CISA KEV required action; if the fixed version is not known from this data, follow Fortinet's FG-IR-18-384 advisory for the correct upgrade path. Rotate SSL VPN credentials and review VPN access logs for path-traversal requests, since successful exploitation exposes plaintext session credentials, and restrict SSL VPN portal exposure to trusted sources where possible.

Ivanti Pulse Connect Secure, an enterprise SSL VPN appliance, contains an arbitrary file read vulnerability (CWE-22, path traversal) that requires no authentication. An unauthenticated remote attacker with network access to the appliance over HTTPS can send a specially crafted URI containing traversal sequences to read arbitrary files from the device. The attacker gains access to sensitive appliance files, potentially including configuration or credential material useful for further compromise, and CISA records known ransomware use of this flaw. Any organization running Pulse Connect Secure, especially gateways exposed to the internet for remote access, is affected. Exploitation is established: CISA added the flaw to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog on 2021-11-03 with known ransomware use, EPSS assigns a 100% probability of exploitation in the next 30 days, and no public PoC is known.

Do: Apply updates per Ivanti's instructions, the required action in the CISA KEV entry, prioritizing internet-facing Pulse Connect Secure gateways, and consult the vendor advisory for the applicable fixed release since no version range is provided here. Where patching is not immediate, restrict HTTPS access to the appliance and hunt for signs of exploitation (unexpected file reads, anomalous VPN logins or sessions, and follow-on ransomware activity), as CISA reports known ransomware use.

Ivanti/Pulse Secure Pulse Connect Secure and Pulse Policy Secure contain an OS command injection flaw (CWE-78) in the admin web interface. An authenticated attacker can send crafted requests to the administrative web interface to inject and execute arbitrary operating-system commands on the appliance. Successful exploitation gives full control of the VPN or network access control appliance, enabling data theft, persistence, and pivoting into the corporate intranet. Any organization running an affected Pulse Connect Secure (9.0RX/8.3RX/8.2RX/8.1RX) or Pulse Policy Secure (9.0RX/5.4RX/5.3RX/5.2RX/5.1RX) release is exposed, especially internet-facing VPN gateways. Exploitation is very active: the bug is in CISA's KEV, public research chained it with CVE-2019-11510 into an unauthenticated RCE chain, APT groups and Black Kingdom ransomware operators have been reported exploiting Pulse VPN flaws, and EPSS estimates a 98.5% probability of exploitation within 30 days.

Do: Upgrade Pulse Connect Secure to 9.0R3.4+ (or 8.3R7.1+, 8.2R12.1+, 8.1R15.1+) and Pulse Policy Secure/Policy Secure to 9.0R3.2+ (or 5.4R7.1+, 5.3R12.1+, 5.2R12.1+, 5.1R15.1+) per vendor instructions. Restrict exposure of the admin web interface to trusted networks, rotate administrative credentials, and hunt for signs of compromise on appliances that were internet-exposed, particularly where the chained CVE-2019-11510 file-read flaw may also have been exploited.