CVE-2014-2686: Ansible Ansible Unsafe Evaluation Of Some Vulnerability

HIGH
Advisory Identifier: GHSA-49m5-2838-q2rv
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CVSS 7.5
CWE-670
Published
Advisory Summary

CVE-2014-2686 is a HIGH (CVSS 7.5) ansible unsafe evaluation of some vulnerability (CWE-670: Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation) affecting Ansible libraries in the PyPI ecosystem. The issue involves ansible unsafe evaluation of some strings. Remediation is available by upgrading affected packages to version 1.5.4.

CVE-2014-2686 at a Glance

CVE Identifier CVE-2014-2686
GHSA Identifier GHSA-49m5-2838-q2rv
Severity HIGH
CVSS v3.1 Base Score 7.5
CWE Classification CWE-670: Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation
Affected Product Ansible
Package Ecosystem PyPI
Published Date
Last Updated

Security Impact

CVSS: 7.5

The security impact metrics below are parsed directly from the CVSS v3.1 vector string (CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N).

Attack Vector Network (AV:N)
Attack Complexity Low (AC:L)
Privileges Required None (PR:N)
User Interaction None (UI:N)
Scope Unchanged (S:U)
Confidentiality None (C:N)
Integrity High (I:H)
Availability None (A:N)

How to Fix CVE-2014-2686

To remediate this vulnerability, upgrade all affected Ansible dependencies to a patched release. Both direct and transitive dependencies should be checked, as frameworks or security libraries may pull in vulnerable versions transitively.

ansible fixed: 1.5.4 
pip install ansible>=1.5.4
Verify Direct and Transitive Dependencies

Run the following command in your project directory to verify that all resolved dependencies use the patched release: 

pip show ansible

How to Check if You Are Affected

To determine whether your Python environment is affected by CVE-2014-2686, inspect your installed packages using pip:

pip show ansible

Analyze the terminal output to locate any version of Ansible in your dependency tree. If any resolved version matches the vulnerable ranges listed in the table below (for example, versions earlier than 1.5.4), your application is affected.

Note: The pip show ansible command checks currently installed packages in your active Python environment.

Technical Details

Vulnerability Mechanism & Technical Analysis

This vulnerability is classified under CWE-670: Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation, where the code contains a control flow path that does not reflect the algorithm that the path is intended to implement, leading to incorrect behavior any time this path is navigated. In Ansible, software state validation or input boundaries are circumvented during processing. Review the official source advisory statement below for specific affected components, classes, and reproduction details.

Source Advisory Statement

Ansible prior to 1.5.4 mishandles the evaluation of some strings.

CVE-2014-2686 Affected Ansible Versions

1 component(s)
Fixed Versions:
1.5.4
Product / Package Ecosystem Affected Versions Fixed Version
ansible
pypi/ansible
PyPI
< 1.5.4
1.5.4

References

NVD — CVE-2014-2686 NVD
https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2014-2686
Security Fix Commit FIX COMMIT
https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/998793fd0ab55705d57527a38cee5e83f535974c
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/ansible/ansible
Ansible Source Repository REPOSITORY
https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/ansible/PYSEC-2020-198.yaml
groups.google.com/forum/ WEB
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/ansible-project/1.5.4/ansible-project/MUQxiKwSQDc/id6aVaawVboJ

Frequently Asked Questions

What is CVE-2014-2686?
CVE-2014-2686 is a security vulnerability in Ansible involving Ansible unsafe evaluation of some strings under CWE-670: Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation.
Which Ansible versions are affected?
Affected versions include releases prior to 1.5.4 across affected packages: ansible.
What version fixes CVE-2014-2686?
Upgrading to 1.5.4 (or the latest patched release for your respective branch) resolves the vulnerability.
Is ansible affected?
Yes, ansible is affected in releases prior to 1.5.4. Upgrade your dependency to 1.5.4 or later.
What is the CVSS score of CVE-2014-2686?
CVE-2014-2686 has a CVSS v3.1 base score of 7.5 (HIGH) with vector string CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N.
What CWE is associated with CVE-2014-2686?
CVE-2014-2686 is classified under CWE-670: Always-Incorrect Control Flow Implementation (The code contains a control flow path that does not reflect the algorithm that the path is intended to implement, leading to incorrect behavior any time this path is navigated.).
How can I check PyPI dependencies for CVE-2014-2686?
Run the dependency tree command: 'pip show ansible'. This command lists direct and transitive dependencies in your build configuration so you can verify if a vulnerable version is resolved.
Machine-readable OSV JSON OSV v1.5 Schema
Normalized schema output
View Raw JSON 
{
  "schema_version" : "1.4.0",
  "id" : "GHSA-49m5-2838-q2rv",
  "modified" : "2024-09-06T19:52:27Z",
  "published" : "2022-05-17T19:57:14Z",
  "aliases" : [ "CVE-2014-2686" ],
  "summary" : "Ansible unsafe evaluation of some strings",
  "details" : "Ansible prior to 1.5.4 mishandles the evaluation of some strings.",
  "severity" : [ {
    "type" : "CVSS_V3",
    "score" : "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:N"
  }, {
    "type" : "CVSS_V4",
    "score" : "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:N/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N"
  } ],
  "affected" : [ {
    "package" : {
      "ecosystem" : "PyPI",
      "name" : "ansible"
    },
    "ranges" : [ {
      "type" : "ECOSYSTEM",
      "events" : [ {
        "introduced" : "0"
      }, {
        "fixed" : "1.5.4"
      } ]
    } ]
  } ],
  "references" : [ {
    "type" : "ADVISORY",
    "url" : "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2014-2686"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible/commit/998793fd0ab55705d57527a38cee5e83f535974c"
  }, {
    "type" : "PACKAGE",
    "url" : "https://github.com/ansible/ansible"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://github.com/pypa/advisory-database/tree/main/vulns/ansible/PYSEC-2020-198.yaml"
  }, {
    "type" : "WEB",
    "url" : "https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/ansible-project/1.5.4/ansible-project/MUQxiKwSQDc/id6aVaawVboJ"
  } ],
  "database_specific" : {
    "cwe_ids" : [ "CWE-670" ],
    "severity" : "HIGH",
    "github_reviewed" : true,
    "github_reviewed_at" : "2023-08-07T20:34:37Z",
    "nvd_published_at" : "2020-01-09T13:15:00Z"
  }
}