IPS signatures are the basis of signature-based intrusion protection. Every attack can be reduced to a particular string of commands or a sequence of commands and variables. Signatures include this information so your FortiGate unit knows what to look for in network traffic.

Signatures also include characteristics about the attack they describe. These characteristics include the network protocol in which the attack will appear, the vulnerable operating system, and the vulnerable application.

To view the complete list of signatures, go to Security Profiles > Intrusion Protection > IPS Signatures. This will include the predefined signatures and any custom signatures that you may have created.