Reviewing FortiGate logs for unauthorized access is a correlation exercise, not a search for one magic entry. Start with administrator authentication records, then compare account, source address, time zone, interface, result and reason with approved activity. Check VPN events as a separate access path and use nearby network events to establish what actually happened.
What FortiGate logs can—and cannot—tell you
A FortiGate record is evidence about an event at a particular device, virtual domain and time. An unfamiliar source address, a burst of failures or an unexpected VPN tunnel is a lead for investigation. It is not, by itself, proof that an attacker authenticated or reached an internal system.
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Fortinet’s FortiOS 7.6.6 log-message reference defines log ID 32002 as “Admin login failed”. It is categorized as a system Event with Alert severity. A 32002 record confirms a failed administrator-login attempt; it does not establish that a later login succeeded, that the account was compromised, or that any internal host was accessed. Those conclusions require surrounding records and knowledge of your approved access patterns.
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Prepare the evidence before interpreting it
Identify the exact device and scope
Write down the FortiGate identifier, serial number, virtual domain (VDOM), software release and the logging destination you are examining. A multi-VDOM deployment can place similar events in different administrative scopes. The same username or address may therefore appear on more than one device or VDOM without representing one continuous session.
Normalize time and time zone
Record the timestamp exactly as logged and retain the tz value. Convert records to one comparison time zone only after preserving the original value. A login that appears to precede a VPN connection may simply be displayed in different zones. FortiOS authentication records include eventtime and tz; use both when building a timeline.
Preserve raw records
Export or otherwise preserve the original entries before filtering them further. Keep the device, VDOM, timestamp, time zone, username, source and destination addresses, interface, method, status, reason and serial number. Screenshots can help explain an incident, but raw records retain fields needed for later correlation.
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Review administrator authentication events
Find failed administrator logins
- Open the FortiGate logging view that contains system or administrator events. The exact menu label varies by FortiOS release and enabled logging features.
- Set a narrow investigation window first, then expand it to include activity immediately before and after each notable record.
- Filter for administrator-authentication failures and inspect records whose message or ID is 32002.
- For every result, record the complete context rather than only the source IP. Note the account, interface, method, status, reason, device or VDOM, destination address when present, and the event time with its time zone.
- Search the same account, source and time window for successful administrator sessions and logout records. The serial-number field can help correlate login and logout events when it is present.
Repeated 32002 entries from one address can indicate password guessing, a misconfigured automation job or an administrator repeatedly entering an incorrect password. A single failure may be ordinary user error. The distinction comes from frequency, timing, source ownership and what follows—not from the failure code alone.
Understand the fields that make a record useful
| Field | What to capture | How it helps the investigation |
|---|---|---|
eventtime |
Original event timestamp | Places the attempt in the timeline; compare it with neighboring events. |
tz |
Logged time-zone value | Prevents false ordering when devices or analysts use different zones. |
user |
Account name | Shows which identity was attempted and lets you compare activity across records. |
srcip |
Originating address | Supports allow-list, ownership and geolocation checks performed under your own policy. |
dstip |
Destination address, when present | Shows which local or management address was targeted. |
ui |
Administrative interface | Distinguishes the management path used for the attempt. |
method |
Authentication or access method | Helps separate web, API, console or another method where the release records it. |
status |
Outcome value | Allows failed and successful records to be compared consistently. |
reason |
FortiOS explanation for the result | Separates invalid credentials and policy or system conditions when supplied. |
sn |
Device serial number | Correlates login and logout records and distinguishes devices in centralized logs. |
Field availability and spelling can vary by release and export format. Treat a missing field as unavailable evidence rather than as proof that the value was empty.
Decide whether an administrator event is anomalous
Compare each candidate record against your approved access inventory: named administrators, service accounts, management networks, expected interfaces, maintenance windows and normal working hours. The following comparisons are useful because they use fields FortiOS records for administrator authentication.
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| Comparison | Questions to ask | What would justify escalation |
|---|---|---|
| Account | Is the user approved for this FortiGate and action? | An unknown account, a disabled account being attempted, or a service account used interactively. |
| Source address | Does the address belong to an approved administrator network, jump host or VPN pool? | An address outside those ranges or an address whose owner cannot be established. |
| Time and time zone | Does the event fall inside a documented change or support window? | Activity at an unexplained time, especially when it repeats across devices. |
| Interface and method | Was the expected management interface and method used? | A new interface or method that has no operational explanation. |
| Status and reason | Are failures isolated, or do they transition to a success? | Repeated failures followed by a success that cannot be matched to an approved user. |
| Device or VDOM | Is this the expected appliance and administrative scope? | Activity on a standby, lab or otherwise unexpected VDOM. |
These are investigative heuristics, not Fortinet-confirmed indicators. Confirm an apparent anomaly with administrator records, ticketed changes, identity-provider logs and the owner of the source address. Do not label an event unauthorized solely because its address is unfamiliar; cloud egress, carrier-grade NAT and roaming users can change source addresses.
Review VPN events as a separate access path
Locate tunnel and authentication activity
- Open the VPN event records for the same device, VDOM and time window used for the administrator review.
- Look for tunnel-up records and other relevant VPN events. In the FortiOS 7.0.6 log-ID guide, VPN events are in the 0101 series; confirm the exact subtype in the reference for your deployed release.
- Capture the VPN account, remote address, tunnel or gateway identity, result and timestamps. Keep the original time zone.
- Compare the VPN identity and address with administrator events. A VPN connection followed by management activity may be an approved jump-host workflow, or it may be an unauthorized route into the management plane.
- Check network and traffic events around the tunnel-up time for destinations, policy decisions and unusual internal access. A tunnel record alone does not show which internal systems were reached.
Correlate the VPN session with approved remote-access schedules and user rosters. A tunnel from a known address can still be suspicious if it uses an unapproved account or occurs outside the account’s normal role. Conversely, an address that looks unfamiliar may be normal for a roaming employee using an approved VPN client.
Build a timeline instead of judging isolated rows
For each investigation, create one chronological worksheet. Use one row per event and retain the device or VDOM, event time and time zone, account, source and destination, interface or method, status, reason, log ID and any serial number. Add a short “expected explanation” column based on change records, then mark whether that explanation is confirmed.
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Patterns that deserve priority
- Many administrator-login failures from one source in a short interval.
- Failures against several usernames, which can indicate account discovery or password spraying.
- Failures followed by a successful session for the same or a related account without an approved explanation.
- A successful management session immediately after an unexpected VPN tunnel-up event.
- VPN activity from an unapproved account, source range, interface or time window.
- The same account appearing on multiple devices or VDOMs in a sequence that does not match the organization’s operating model.
- Management activity followed by policy, object, routing or other configuration changes that no authorized administrator can explain.
None of these patterns proves compromise. They tell you which records to expand and which owners to contact. Establishing unauthorized access normally requires corroboration from identity, endpoint, VPN and network records.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Use the reference that matches your FortiOS release
FortiOS log IDs, fields and export mappings are release-specific. The 7.6.6 administrator-login reference documents ID 32002 and its authentication fields. The 7.0.6 log-ID guide places VPN events in the 0101 series. A FortiOS 7.4.0 log-message reference documents applicable messages, extended logging and CEF mappings for remote syslog. Do not assume that an ID, field or severity seen in one release has exactly the same availability or meaning in another.
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|---|---|---|
| FortiOS 7.6.6 administrator-login messages | Defines “Admin login failed” as log ID 32002, a system Event with Alert severity, and lists fields such as eventtime, tz, user, srcip, dstip, ui, method, status, reason and sn. |
Use it to interpret a 7.6.6 deployment or verify that the same message exists in your release. |
| FortiOS 7.0.6 log-ID guide | Explains the ID structure and identifies the 0101 series for VPN events. | Confirm the subtype and field set against the release actually generating your logs. |
| FortiOS 7.4.0 log-message reference | Describes messages, extended logging and CEF mappings for remote syslog. | CEF output may rename or transform fields; preserve the original FortiGate record when possible. |
The 7.4.0 documentation also notes that performance statistics are not logged to disk but can be received by syslog or FortiAnalyzer. If your investigation depends on performance data, verify that the relevant remote destination was enabled; absence from local disk is not evidence that the metric never existed.
Centralize and correlate multi-event investigations
When several FortiGates, VPN gateways or administrative domains are involved, a central platform can reduce manual searching. FortiAnalyzer documents an event handler for malicious remote-IP detection in VPN: it triggers when a VPN tunnel-up log matches a malicious IP, then provides correlation, incident context and investigation of possible lateral movement.
Use that handler as a workflow to validate, not as a guarantee that every unauthorized session will be detected. Confirm how the IP list is maintained, which logs are ingested, how matching is performed and what response action follows. A malicious-IP match can be a useful prioritization signal, while an address that is not on the list does not become safe by default.
Validate the central workflow
- Confirm that the FortiGate sending VPN events is registered and that tunnel-up records arrive with timestamps and source addresses intact.
- Check that the event handler’s IP-matching data is current and appropriate for your organization’s geography and threat model.
- Generate or review a known benign VPN event to verify that normal sessions do not create misleading incidents.
- For a test alert, trace the linked administrator, VPN and network records back to the originating FortiGate and VDOM.
- Document who reviews the incident, which evidence is retained and how a confirmed unauthorized session is contained.
Remote syslog, CEF and retention considerations
If logs are forwarded to remote syslog, the FortiOS 7.4.0 reference’s CEF mappings can help a SIEM parse message fields. Mapping is not the same as preserving the original schema: a collector may rename fields, flatten nested data or omit values. Keep the raw message alongside parsed fields and record the FortiOS version that produced it.
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Retention determines whether you can prove a sequence. Set investigation windows that include the earliest failed attempt, any successful login, the VPN tunnel establishment and subsequent configuration or traffic events. If a local log has rolled over, check the configured remote destination or FortiAnalyzer rather than assuming the event never occurred.
What to do when access appears unauthorized
Do not delete records or repeatedly test credentials on a production device. Preserve the timeline and notify the organization’s incident-response owner. The containment decision depends on whether the evidence shows only probing, a successful administrator session, a VPN session, or configuration and network activity after access.
- Record the affected FortiGate, VDOM, accounts, source addresses, time range and log IDs.
- Compare the activity with approved changes and ask the account owner to confirm or reject it through a trusted channel.
- Preserve related identity-provider, endpoint, VPN and network records before their retention periods expire.
- If compromise is confirmed or strongly suspected, follow the organization’s emergency procedure for disabling or rotating credentials, restricting management access and reviewing configuration changes.
- After containment, review why the event was possible and whether logging, remote retention, MFA, network restrictions or alerting need adjustment.
These response actions are operational decisions, not conclusions supplied by a single FortiGate message. Keep the evidence trail clear enough that another analyst can reproduce your timeline without relying on memory.
Quick Recap
A concise review checklist
- Device identifier, serial number, VDOM and FortiOS release recorded.
- Original timestamp and time zone retained for every event.
- Administrator failures filtered, including log ID 32002 where applicable.
- Username, source and destination address, interface, method, status and reason captured.
- Successful sessions and logout records searched for the same account and source.
- VPN tunnel-up and related 0101-series events reviewed separately.
- Approved accounts, addresses and maintenance windows checked.
- Nearby configuration and network events correlated.
- Release-specific references used for IDs, fields and CEF mappings.
- Raw records and the final timeline preserved in the approved incident repository.
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