# PEERSTITCH Malware Exploits FortiOS Flaw to Hijack Tagged VPN Sessions

Researchers at The Hacker News reported that a new malware family called PEERSTITCH is being deployed through a vulnerability in Fortinet's FortiOS, allowing attackers to bypass security checks on VPN sessions marked with specific tags. The technique lets intruders operate inside established, trusted VPN tunnels, making malicious traffic harder to distinguish from legitimate remote access. It matters because FortiGate appliances guard the network edge at many large organizations, so a flaw that evades session checks could give attackers a quiet foothold into corporate networks.

**Importance:** 3/5

## Sources

### Security
- [The Hacker News](https://thehackernews.com/2026/10/attackers-exploit-fortios-flaw-to.html) — Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:29:36 +0530