CVE-2014-3120

Exp

The default configuration in Elasticsearch before 1.2 enables dynamic scripting, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary MVEL expressions and Java code via the source parameter to _search. NOTE: this only violates the vendor's intended security policy if the user does not run Elasticsearch in its own independent virtual machine.

Published: 2014-07-28 Last update: 2026-04-22 Assigner: [email protected] Source: [email protected]

NVD Status：Analyzed，CVE State: published

View at NVD, CVE.org, EUVD

Threat Intelligence & Risk Assessment for CVE-2014-3120

KEV EPSS CVSS CWE GHSA Exploit-DB Affected OS Tracker

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2014-3120 is rated Critical Active Threat (93.8/100): CVSS High severity, with high exploitation likelihood (EPSS 84.24%, 99th percentile). Core evidence: CISA KEV confirms active exploitation (added 2022-03-25) affecting Elastic / Elasticsearch. a weakness (CWE-284) Unauthenticated remote administrative access may be possible. EPSS rose +1.64% over the last day, indicating growing attacker interest. Mandatory action: The CISA remediation deadline has passed—treat as an emergency patch priority.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

CISA KEV Record for CVE-2014-3120

Name: Elasticsearch Remote Code Execution Vulnerability · CISA KEV detail

Exploit added: 2022-03-25

Action due: 2022-04-15

Required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Public exploit references (Exploit-DB) for CVE-2014-3120

EDB-ID	Source	Kind	Published	Link
33588	exploit_db	edb	2014-05-30	Exploit-DB ↗
33370	exploit_db	edb	2014-05-15	Exploit-DB ↗
—	nvd_ref	exploit_tag		Exploit-DB ↗
—	nvd_ref	exploit_tag		Exploit-DB ↗
—	nvd_ref	exploit_tag		Exploit-DB ↗
—	nvd_ref	exploit_tag		Exploit-DB ↗
—	nvd_ref	exploit_tag		Exploit-DB ↗

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2014-3120

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

#	Date	Old EPSS score	New EPSS score	Delta (New - Old)
1	2026-05-22	82.60%	84.24%	+1.64%
2	2026-04-01	85.56%	82.60%	-2.96%
3	2025-11-04	—	85.56%	—

Full EPSS history (24 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2014-3120

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score	Version	Severity	Vector	Exploitability	Impact	Score source
8.1	3.1	HIGH	`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:N) Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine. Attack complexity (AC:L) Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup. Privileges required (PR:L) A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin. User interaction (UI:N) Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping. Scope (S:U) Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems. Confidentiality (C:H) Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way. Integrity (I:H) They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt. Availability (A:N) Service keeps running; no real outage angle.	2.8	5.2	[email protected]
8.1	3.1	HIGH	`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N` Click to expand Attack vector (AV:N) Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine. Attack complexity (AC:L) Once they can reach the bug, pulling it off is straightforward—no weird race conditions or rare setup. Privileges required (PR:L) A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin. User interaction (UI:N) Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping. Scope (S:U) Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems. Confidentiality (C:H) Serious risk that confidential data gets exposed in a big way. Integrity (I:H) They could widely tamper with or forge data—trust in the data is badly hurt. Availability (A:N) Service keeps running; no real outage angle.	2.8	5.2	134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0
6.8	2.0	MEDIUM	`AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:P/I:P/A:P` Click to expand Access vector (AV:N) Can be exploited remotely over network reachability. Access complexity (AC:M) Exploitation needs some favorable conditions, but not exceptional ones. Authentication (AU:N) No authentication is required. Confidentiality impact (C:P) Partial confidentiality impact. Integrity impact (I:P) Partial integrity impact. Availability impact (A:P) Partial availability impact.	8.6	6.4	[email protected]

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2014-3120

CWE-284 MITRE ↗

GitHub Security Advisory for CVE-2014-3120

GHSA-mrfm-jxgf-2h6v · Severity: high · Ecosystem: maven — Elasticsearch Improper Access Control vulnerability

OS Trackers for CVE-2014-3120

vendor	priority	summary	link
`redhat`	high	—	https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2014-3120

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2014-3120

Vendor	Product	Version	Raw CPE
elastic	elasticsearch	< 1.2.0	cpe:2.3:a:elastic:elasticsearch::::::::

References for CVE-2014-3120

URL	Tags
http://bouk.co/blog/elasticsearch-rce/	Exploit
http://www.exploit-db.com/exploits/33370	Exploit
http://www.osvdb.org/106949	Broken Link
http://www.rapid7.com/db/modules/exploit/multi/elasticsearch/script_mvel_rce	Exploit Third Party Advisory
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/67731	Exploit
https://www.elastic.co/blog/logstash-1-4-3-released	Vendor Advisory
https://www.elastic.co/community/security/	Vendor Advisory
https://www.found.no/foundation/elasticsearch-security/#staying-safe-while-developing-with-elasticsearch	Exploit
https://www.cisa.gov/known-exploited-vulnerabilities-catalog?field_cve=CVE-2014-3120	US Government Resource

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