# CVE-2019-14514: Command injection in n/a

> Attackers can execute arbitrary commands with root privileges on the host by sending malicious input to the emulator's TCP port.

- **Severity:** Critical 9.8 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:H/I:H/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** No
- **Published:** 10 Feb 2020
- **Updated:** 5 Aug 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-8wfj-rf7c-w472

## What is CVE-2019-14514?

CVE-2019-14514 is a critical command injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 10 Feb 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

An issue was discovered in Microvirt MEmu all versions prior to 7.0.2. A guest Android operating system inside the MEmu emulator contains a /system/bin/systemd binary that is run with root privileges on startup (this is unrelated to Red Hat's systemd init program, and is a closed-source proprietary tool that seems to be developed by Microvirt). This program opens TCP port 21509, presumably to receive installation-related commands from the host OS. Because everything after the installer:uninstall command is concatenated directly into a system() call, it is possible to execute arbitrary commands by supplying shell metacharacters.

Weakness: CWE-78 (Improper Neutralization of Special Elements used in an OS Command)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2019-14514?

It affects 1 product.


Products: Microvirt Memu.

## How do I fix CVE-2019-14514?

No fix has been published for CVE-2019-14514 yet. Limit exposure of the affected software until one is available.

## Is CVE-2019-14514 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-14514 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Public exploit code:

- Remote code execution in Microvirt MEmu (github_poc): https://github.com/seqred-s-a/cve-2019-14514

## Other vulnerabilities in n/a

- [CVE-2019-25568](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-25568/): Memu Play 6.0.7 Privilege Escalation via Insecure File Permissions (critical 9.3)
- [CVE-2018-20621](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2018-20621/): Privilege escalation in n/a (high 7.8)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2019-14514 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2019-14514 is a critical command injection vulnerability in n/a, published on 10 Feb 2020. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2019-14514 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected product: n/a. No package-level version data is available, so check the vendor advisory linked from the reference page.

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14514/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14514/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2019-14514
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2019-14514
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2019-14514

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2019-14514/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.