What is CVE-2014-6278?

CVE-2014-6278 is a high-severity vulnerability in Gnu Bash, classified under OS Command Injection. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2014-09-30.

How severe is CVE-2014-6278?

High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.

Is CVE-2014-6278 known to be exploited?

Yes. CVE-2014-6278 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2025-10-02), indicating it is being actively exploited. 42 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.

RCE in Gnu Bash

CVE-2014-6278

GNU Bash through 4.3 bash43-026 does not properly parse function definitions in the values of environment variables, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary commands via a crafted environment, as demonstrated by vectors involvin…

Vulnerability class: Command Injection (OS Command Injection)

EPSS: 0.996 (99.9th percentile) — read the EPSS interpretation.

CVSS v3 metric

CVSS v3 base score 8.8 (High). Vector: CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:R/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H.

Affected products

Gnu Bash — versions 1.14.0, 1.14.1, 1.14.2
N/a — versions n/a

Weakness classification (CWE)

CWE-78 — OS Command Injection

CISA KEV (Known Exploited Vulnerabilities)

This CVE is on the CISA KEV catalog, added on 2025-10-02. CISA KEV inclusion means CISA has confirmed in-the-wild exploitation; US federal agencies are required to remediate within a published due date.

BOD 22-01 due date: 2025-10-23.

Required action: Apply mitigations per vendor instructions, follow applicable BOD 22-01 guidance for cloud services, or discontinue use of the product if mitigations are unavailable.

Public proof-of-concept exploits

References

security@debian.org (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_HP, vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_HP, vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_HP, vendor-advisory, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_CONFIRM, Third Party Advisory)
security@debian.org (Third Party Advisory, x_refsource_JVN, third-party-advisory)
security@debian.org (x_refsource_SECUNIA, Broken Link, third-party-advisory)

Frequently asked questions

What is CVE-2014-6278?: CVE-2014-6278 is a high-severity vulnerability in Gnu Bash, classified under OS Command Injection. CVSS score: 8.8/10. Published 2014-09-30.
How severe is CVE-2014-6278?: High severity. CVSS v3 base score is 8.8 out of 10.
Is CVE-2014-6278 known to be exploited?: Yes. CVE-2014-6278 is listed in the CISA Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog (added 2025-10-02), indicating it is being actively exploited. 42 public proof-of-concept repositories are indexed.