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Git AnnexApplication · Git Annex Project

CVE-2014-6274

HIGH · 7.5 CVSS v3.1 Published 2025-06-26
Fix available
A fix is available. Upgrade to 5.20140919 or later.
See remediation →
84/100
Remediation priority · High
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
git-annex had a bug in the S3 and Glacier remotes where if embedcreds=yes was set, and the remote used encryption=pubkey or encryption=hybrid, the embedded AWS credentials were stored in the git repository in (effectively) plaintext, not encrypted as they were supposed to be. This issue affects git-annex: from 3.20121126 before 5.20140919.

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

git-annex had a flaw in S3 and Glacier remote configurations where AWS credentials embedded with embedcreds=yes were stored in plaintext in the git repository when encryption was set to pubkey or hybrid mode, despite the expectation that credentials would be encrypted. This exposed AWS access keys and secrets in repository history.

MitigationUsers should immediately upgrade git-annex to version 5.20140919 or later, audit repositories for exposed AWS credentials, rotate any potentially compromised AWS keys, and consider purging git history or regenerating repositories if credentials cannot be confirmed removed.

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
Git AnnexApplication
Affected:>= 3.20121126, < 5.20140919

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
Low
Privileges
None
User interaction
None
Scope
Unchanged
Confidentiality
High
Integrity
None
Availability
None

CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:N/A:N

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. Check git-annex version
    Run `git annex version` or `git annex --version` to determine the installed version
    Affected if Version is 3.20121126 or higher but lower than 5.20140919
  2. Identify S3 or Glacier remotes
    Run `git annex info --json` and search for remotes with type "S3" or "Glacier" in the output, or use `git remote -v` to list remotes
    Affected if Any S3 or Glacier remotes are configured
  3. Inspect remote embedcreds setting
    Run `git config --get remote.<remote-name>.embedcreds` for each S3/Glacier remote, or examine the git-annex configuration in `.git/config`
    Affected if embedcreds=yes is set on any S3 or Glacier remote
  4. Check encryption mode for affected remotes
    Run `git config --get remote.<remote-name>.encryption` for each S3/Glacier remote with embedcreds=yes
    Affected if Encryption is set to "pubkey" or "hybrid"
  5. Search repository history for AWS credentials
    Use `git log --all -p` or `git log --all -S <access-key-id>` to search commit history for AWS access key IDs (typically 20-character alphanumeric strings starting with AKIA) or search for "aws_secret_access_key" in git history with `git grep -i "secret" --all-match`
    Affected if Plaintext AWS access keys or secret keys appear in git history

A user is affected if they run a vulnerable git-annex version (3.20121126 to <5.20140919) with S3 or Glacier remotes configured using embedcreds=yes and pubkey or hybrid encryption, and their git history contains plaintext AWS credentials.

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.

dbcve · scoped
Upgrade available Upgrade to 5.20140919 or later
Fixed in 5.20140919
Interim mitigation

Users should immediately upgrade git-annex to version 5.20140919 or later, audit repositories for exposed AWS credentials, rotate any potentially compromised AWS keys, and consider purging git history or regenerating repositories if credentials cannot be confirmed removed.

Recommended fix High confidence

5.20140919

  1. Upgrade git-annex to version 5.20140919 or later to resolve the credential storage vulnerability.
  2. After upgrading, verify that any S3 or Glacier remotes with embedcreds=yes and encryption=pubkey or encryption=hybrid are properly reconfigured to ensure credentials are no longer stored in plaintext.
  3. If a previously affected repository exists, consider rotating the AWS credentials that were exposed, as they may have been stored in plaintext in git history.

Generated from the published advisory — verify against the referenced sources before acting.

Fix this in Git Annex Scoped from the published advisory
  • Consultation4.0 h
  • Implementation6.0 h
  • Testing2.0 h
  • Review / QA2.0 h
14.0 hours of engineering $2,540
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An estimate, not a bill — we confirm scope with you before any work starts. Need it this week? Rush from $4,064.

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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-2014-6274 in production — separate from our analysis above.

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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