Raw vector
CVSS:3.1/AV:L/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:HCVSS and EPSS are reproduced from their sources (NVD, FIRST EPSS). Risk Priority is our own derived reading, not an NVD score.
Summary
CVE-2014-0196 is a medium-severity Race Condition (CWE-362) vulnerability in Linux Linux Kernel. Its CVSS base score is 5.5 (Medium).
Operationally, ranked in the top 2% of CVEs by exploit likelihood; CISA has added it to the Known Exploited Vulnerabilities catalog; a public proof-of-concept is referenced.
Deeper analysis AI-assisted summary
Synthesised by an AI model from the NVD description and linked references — a reading aid, not an authoritative source.
The vulnerability is a race condition (CWE-362) in the n_tty_write function within drivers/tty/n_tty.c of the Linux kernel through version 3.14.3. It occurs specifically in the LECHO and !OPOST case when the function fails to properly manage tty driver access during concurrent read and write operations involving long strings, leading to memory corruption.
Local users with the ability to perform tty read and write operations can trigger the race condition to achieve a denial of service via memory corruption and system crash, or potentially elevate privileges. The CVSS 5.5 score reflects local attack vector, low complexity, and privileges required, with high impact on availability but none on confidentiality or integrity.
Vendor advisories and patches, including the referenced kernel commit, Oracle ELSA-2014-0771, and openSUSE security announcements, address the issue through updates that correct the tty handling logic in affected kernels.
OWASP Top 10 for Web (2025)
EU & UK References
- 🇪🇺 ENISA EUVD: EUVD-2014-0247
Vulnerability Data
The n_tty_write function in drivers/tty/n_tty.c in the Linux kernel through 3.14.3 does not properly manage tty driver access in the "LECHO & !OPOST" case, which allows local users to cause a denial of service (memory corruption and system crash) or…
more
gain privileges by triggering a race condition involving read and write operations with long strings.
- CWE(s)
- KEV Date Added
- 12 May 2023
Related Threats
CVEs Like This One
Affected Assets
Mitigating Controls
Likely Mitigating Controls AI
Per-CVE control mapping for this CVE has not run yet; the list below is derived from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry.
Accurate timestamps from internal clocks enable detection of race conditions by providing reliable event ordering in audit logs.
Coordination of concurrent security activities reduces the probability that shared resources will be accessed simultaneously without proper synchronization.
Mitigating Controls (ISO/IEC 27001:2022 Annex A) AI
Derived directly from the weakness types (CWEs) cited in the NVD entry via our AI-authored CWE→ISO cross-walk (authority under review) — links open the control.
A.8.25 mandates secure SDLC practices (secure coding guidelines, security requirements, checkpoints, testing including code scans/penetration tests, developer training) that reach race conditions in concurrent code, but only as one slice of a broad requirement whose implementation scope and rigour are left to the organisation.
A.8.26 explicitly lists resilience against malicious attacks including SQL injections and input validation as application security requirements to identify/address; race conditions are a similar class of timing-based concurrency flaw that can be mitigated by requirements for proper synchronization/locking, but this is only one slice of the broad CWE-362 class (most instances arise in low-level shared-memory or TOCTOU scenarios not named here).
Secure architecture principles require proper synchronization and resource isolation, addressing the root cause of CWE-362.
Secure coding standards explicitly forbid unsafe concurrent access patterns and mandate atomic operations or locks.
Security testing can detect race conditions, but does not prevent them at design or coding time.
Hardening callouts derived
DISA STIG baselines are authored against specific weaknesses. Where this CVE cites a broad weakness class, the mapping is not asserted at that abstraction (owner ruling, 2026-09-25: grade only at Base and below), so no rule is shown here rather than a rule shown against the wrong grain.
- No fine-grained STIG row for CWE-362, a class-level weakness, and none of its children carries one either.