MySQLDatabase / datastore · Oracle
CVE-2014-4260
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedUnspecified vulnerability in the MySQL Server component in Oracle MySQL 5.5.37 and earlier, and 5.6.17 and earlier, allows remote authenticated users to affect integrity and availability via vectors related to SRCHAR.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceThis is an unspecified vulnerability in the MySQL Server component related to SRCHAR (string/character handling). It requires remote authenticated access and allows attackers to impact integrity and availability, likely through malformed character/string data manipulation in SQL queries.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data
MySQLDatabase / datastore
>= 5.5.0, <= 5.5.37>= 5.6.0, <= 5.6.17
Debian LinuxOperating system
= 7.0
MariaDBDatabase / datastore
>= 5.5.0, < 5.5.38>= 10.0.0, < 10.0.12= 11.3= 11= 12= 11= 12= 11= 12= 12CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Network
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- Single
- Confidentiality
- None
- Integrity
- Partial
- Availability
- Partial
AV:N/AC:L/Au:S/C:N/I:P/A:P
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
-
Determine installed MySQL or MariaDB versionRun `mysql --version` or `mysqld --version` from command line, or query with `SELECT VERSION();` inside the MySQL clientAffected if Version falls within 5.5.0-5.5.37, 5.6.0-5.6.17, 5.5.0-5.5.37 (MariaDB), or 10.0.0-10.0.11 (MariaDB)
-
Identify MySQL service exposureCheck network configuration with `netstat -tlnp | grep 3306` or review firewall rules to see if port 3306 is listening on non-localhost interfacesAffected if MySQL port 3306 is accessible from network addresses other than localhost or 127.0.0.1
-
Verify authentication is required for exploitationConfirm that remote user authentication is enabled by checking that a valid MySQL user account exists with remote access privileges, visible in `mysql.user` tableAffected if Remote user accounts exist in the mysql.user table and the server accepts remote connections
-
Check character set configurationReview my.cnf or my.ini for character set settings, or query `SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'character_set%';` inside MySQL clientAffected if Non-default character set settings are in use (vulnerability relates to SRCHAR string/character handling)
You are affected if your MySQL/MariaDB version matches the vulnerable ranges AND the server accepts remote authenticated connections with character set configuration in use.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor data5.5.3810.0.12
Upgrade MySQL Server to a version higher than 5.5.37 and 5.6.17 (e.g., 5.5.38+ or 5.6.18+), or apply the corresponding Oracle Critical Patch Update. Test application compatibility in a non-production environment before deploying to production.
Fix this in MySQL
Scoped from the published advisory
- Consultation3.0 h
- Implementation4.0 h
- Testing8.0 h
- Review / QA3.0 h
An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,896.
Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-4260 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-4260 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
Be the first to add a field note for this CVE — a mitigation you’ve verified, a version caveat, or a link to a working fix. Sign in above to contribute.
A place for practitioners to share what actually worked: a mitigation you’ve tested, a configuration change, a version- or environment-specific caveat, or a link to a verified patch. The most useful notes rise to the top as peers upvote them, so the signal stays high.
- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
- No spam, self-promotion, credentials, or personal data