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ExploitedIn CISA KEVFix available

CVE-2014-3120

Exploitation confirmed. First attested on 2022-03-25 by CISA-ADP, CISA KEV, GCVE · kevintel, GCVE · shadowserver.

  • Published2014-07-28
  • Fixed in1.2.0
  • WeaknessCWE-284

Am I affected?

With a domain, we read the version its public headers and pages expose. A distribution build can carry the fix under an older number.

Description

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.

Timeline

dates in UTC
  1. 2014-07-2819:55CVE publishedNVD
  2. 2022-03-25Listed as exploited by GCVEGCVE
  3. 2022-03-25Exploitation first reportedCISA KEV
  4. 2022-03-25Added to the CISA KEV catalogCISA KEV
  5. 2025-02-1020:14SSVC exploitation set to activeCISA-ADP
  6. 2026-10-2319:23First public proof of conceptPoC-in-GitHub
  7. 2026-10-2319:23EPSS crossed 10 %FIRST EPSS

Observed activity

isMalicious corpus · updated 2026-10-23 21:37 UTC
Indicators tagged with this CVE, per day0 indicators over 7 days
Block these indicators
  • Firewall list (EDL, text): https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2014-3120?format=txt
  • CSV export: https://api.ismalicious.com/edl/cve/CVE-2014-3120?format=csv
  • TAXII collection of exploited CVEs
  • The EDL and CSV take an API key on the Pro plan.

Versions per branch

NVD · OSV
Elasticsearch
BranchAffectedFixed in
1.2< 1.2.01.2.0
elasticsearch
BranchAffectedFixed in
1.4< 1.4.0.Beta11.4.0.Beta1

as publishedRanges as NVD and OSV publish them; a distribution’s build can be fixed under an older number.

Fix

  1. Update Elasticsearch to 1.2.0
  2. CISA’s required action: Apply updates per vendor instructions.due 2022-04-15

Advisories and patches

Detection

read 2026-10-23 19:23 UTC
Nuclei template
none so far
ProjectDiscovery
Exploit-DB
no entry
Exploit-DB

CISA Known Exploited Vulnerability

Date Added
2022-03-25
Patch Due Date
2022-04-15
Ransomware Use
Unknown
Required Action
Apply updates per vendor instructions.

Sources

  • CISA KEVKEV entry2022-03-25
  • GCVEexploitation2022-03-25
  • CISA-ADPSSVC decisionactive2025-02-10
  • OpenCVESSVC decisionactive—
  • CISA-ADPCVSS 3.18.12025-02-10
  • NVDCVSS 3.18.1read 2026-10-23
  • NVDCVSS 2.06.8read 2026-10-23
  • CISA-ADPweakness (CWE)CWE-2842025-02-10
  • NVDweakness (CWE)CWE-284read 2026-10-23
  • FIRST EPSSEPSS score88.6 %read 2026-10-23
  • PoC-in-GitHubproof of concept5read 2026-10-23
  • OSVaffected packages—

Technical details

CVSS v3 Vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N
Published
2014-07-28
Last Modified
2026-06-17
NVD status
Analyzed

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2014-3120?

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.

Is CVE-2014-3120 actively exploited?

Yes. CVE-2014-3120 is on the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities (KEV) catalog, meaning it has been confirmed as actively exploited in the wild. CISA requires federal agencies to patch by 2022-04-15.

What is the CVSS score for CVE-2014-3120?

CVE-2014-3120 has a CVSS v3 base score of 8.1 (HIGH severity), with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:N.

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Surveillance reads the versions in your stack — a domain, a lockfile or a list — checks each CVE against the ranges its sources publish, and alerts you when one you run is exploited or enters CISA KEV. A version it cannot read stays « version not verified ».

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