Remote Code Execution in Elastic Elasticsearch Groovy Scripting Engine (CVE‑2015‑1427)
What It Is – The Groovy scripting engine bundled with Elasticsearch (pre‑2.3.0) contains a sandbox bypass that lets an unauthenticated remote attacker execute arbitrary shell commands on the host.
Exploitability – Public proof‑of‑concept code exists; the vulnerability is rated High (CVSS v2 7.5). No authentication is required, and exploitation can be performed over the network.
Affected Products – Elastic Elasticsearch versions 1.0‑2.2.x that include the default Groovy scripting module.
Why It Matters for Trust & Control Assurance
- Patch Management Evidence – Demonstrating that critical third‑party components are patched is a core control for continuous audit readiness.
- Configuration Hardening – Disabling or restricting scripting engines provides tangible evidence of risk mitigation.
- Supply‑Chain Visibility – Mapping this flaw to a control objective shows how a single component can affect multiple compliance regimes (e.g., NIST CSF, ISO 27001) through a unified VCF control.
Recommended Actions
- Upgrade Elasticsearch to 2.3.0 or later, or disable the Groovy scripting engine if the feature is not required.
- Verify that the
script.disable_dynamicsetting is enforced and document the change in your configuration management system. - Capture remediation evidence (patch version, configuration files) and map the fix to the “Secure Configuration Management” control objective in your framework of record.
Source: CISA KEV – CVE‑2015‑1427