dbcve.org
Zenoss CoreApplication · Zenoss

CVE-2014-6261

HIGH · 9.3 CVSS v2.0 Published 2014-12-15
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to after 5.0.0 or later.
See remediation →
100/100
Remediation priority · Urgent
Remotely reachable No privileges Zero-click

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 · unedited
Zenoss Core through 5 Beta 3 does not properly implement the Check For Updates feature, which allows remote attackers to execute arbitrary code by (1) spoofing the callhome server or (2) deploying a crafted web site that is visited during a login session, aka ZEN-12657.

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 · high confidence

Zenoss Core through 5 Beta 3 has a vulnerability in the Check For Updates feature that fails to properly validate update sources. Attackers can achieve remote code execution by either spoofing the callhome server (MITM) or tricking users into visiting a malicious website during a login session, causing the application to trust and execute arbitrary code from these untrusted sources.

MitigationDisable or restrict the Check For Updates feature until patching to a fixed version is possible. If the feature must remain enabled, ensure network communication occurs only over properly validated HTTPS connections and implement network-segmentation controls to prevent callhome server spoofing.

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
Zenoss CoreApplication
Affected:<= 5.0.0= 2.4.0= 2.4.5= 2.5.0= 2.5.1= 2.5.2= 3.0.0= 3.0.1= 3.0.2= 3.0.3= 3.1.0= 3.2.0

CVSS 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
M
Authentication
None
Confidentiality
Complete
Integrity
Complete
Availability
Complete

AV:N/AC:M/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C

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 checks

Work through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.

  1. Identify Zenoss Core installed version
    Run 'zenpack --version' or check the Zenoss installation directory for version metadata. On Linux systems, also check '/opt/zenoss' or RPM package information via 'rpm -qi zenoss-core' if installed via package manager.
    Affected if The installed version matches any of these: <= 5.0.0, 2.4.0, 2.4.5, 2.5.0, 2.5.1, 2.5.2, 3.0.0, 3.0.1, 3.0.2, 3.0.3, 3.1.0, or 3.2.0.
  2. Locate Check For Updates feature configuration
    Examine Zenoss configuration files in the installation directory for settings related to 'update', 'check for updates', 'callhome', or 'upgrade' functionality. Common locations include configuration directories under '/opt/zenoss' or within the Zenoss web interface settings.
    Affected if The feature configuration exists and is enabled in the Zenoss environment.
  3. Verify update source validation mechanism
    Inspect the configuration controlling update server URLs and validate whether SSL/TLS certificate validation and source authentication are properly implemented. Look for settings that control whether the update feature verifies server identity.
    Affected if The update feature does not enforce strict validation of update source identity or fails to verify SSL/TLS certificates from the callhome server.
  4. Confirm Check For Updates feature is active
    Check if the Check For Updates functionality has been triggered or scheduled within the Zenoss instance. This may be visible in system logs, scheduled tasks, or the Zenoss web interface under Administrator or Settings sections.
    Affected if The Check For Updates feature has been enabled or used in the current deployment.

The environment is affected if Zenoss Core version is one of the listed affected versions AND the Check For Updates feature is enabled, with the vulnerability being that update sources are not properly validated.

Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.

Check your environment

Paste your version and any relevant configuration and it will be compared against the affected criteria above. Do not include secrets or credentials.

AI-assisted, checked against the advisory. Informational, not a guarantee.

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 data
Upgrade available Upgrade to a release after 5.0.0
Interim mitigation

Disable or restrict the Check For Updates feature until patching to a fixed version is possible. If the feature must remain enabled, ensure network communication occurs only over properly validated HTTPS connections and implement network-segmentation controls to prevent callhome server spoofing.

Fix this in Zenoss Core Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation8.0 h
  • Testing6.0 h
  • Review / QA4.0 h
22.0 hours of engineering $3,860
Get the upgrade done

An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $6,176.

Scan for this in your stack

Free · runs locally
dbcve dependency scanner

Check whether your project pulls in CVE-2014-6261 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.

Get it on GitHub Scan in the browser

References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.

Primary sources

Practitioner notes

Contributed

Peer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2014-6261 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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.

What this is

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.

What belongs here
  • 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