nimiq-consensus panics via RequestMacroChain micro-block locator
Key facts
- Attack vector
- Network
- Privileges required
- None
- User interaction
- None
- Attack complexity
- Low
- Impact type
- Denial of service
- Confidentiality · integrity · availability
- None · None · Low
- Fix status
- Fixed
Attack profile from CVSS 3.1 · CNA. Fix status from CNA and GitHub. Impact type from CWE-617.
Summary
nimiq/core-rs-albatross is a Rust implementation of the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake protocol based on the Albatross consensus algorithm. In versions 1.2.2 and below, an unauthenticated p2p peer can cause the RequestMacroChain message handler task to panic. Sending a RequestMacroChain message where the first locator hash on the victim’s main chain is a micro block hash (not a macro block hash) causes said panic. The RequestMacroChain::handle handler selects the locator based only on "is on main chain", then calls get_macro_blocks() and panics via .unwrap() when the selected hash is not a macro block (BlockchainError::BlockIsNotMacro). This issue has been fixed in version 1.3.0.
Why it matters now
SSVC decision points
CISA ADP · SSVC 2.0.3
- Exploitation
- None
- Automatable
- Yes
- Technical impact
- Partial
The decision (Track, Attend, Act) also depends on your mission and well-being impact; see CISA's SSVC guide.
Affected products
| Vendor | Product | Affected versions | Fixed in | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| nimiq | core-rs-albatross | before 1.3.0 | 1.3.0 | Patch available | CNA |
| — | nimiq-consensus (crates.io) | up to 1.2.2 | — | No fix listed | GHSA-48m6-486p-9j8p |
- core-rs-albatross Vendornimiq Affected before 1.3.0 Fixed in 1.3.0 Patch available CNA
- nimiq-consensus (crates.io) Vendor— Affected up to 1.2.2 Fixed in — No fix listed GHSA-48m6-486p-9j8p
Remediation
- Fix · CNA core-rs-albatross (nimiq) Fixed in 1.3.0
Timeline
- 2026-10-02 Threatist record created from CVE-2026-34069
- 2026-10-03 Alias added: GHSA-48m6-486p-9j8p
References
Patch 3
More Nimiq Proof-of-stake vulnerabilities
- TI-2026-26389 nimiq-account: Vesting insufficient funds error can panic CVSS 3.1HIGH 8.2
- TI-2026-25867 nimiq-block has skip block quorum bypass via out-of-range BitSet indices & u16 truncation CVSS 3.1CRITICAL 9.6
- TI-2026-27598 nimiq/core-rs-albatross: Panic in history index request handlers when a full node runs without the history index CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2026-26390 nimiq-primitives: Node crash due to missing interlink validation in election macro block proposals CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2026-26388 network-libp2p: Peer can crash the node by opening discovery protocol substream twice CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
- TI-2026-25612 nimiq/core-rs-albatross: Discovery handshake limit could underflow and later provoke a deterministic overflow panic CVSS 3.1HIGH 7.5
Sources
- CVE-2026-34069 · CVE Program
- CVE-2026-34069 · NVD
- FIRST EPSS
- GHSA-48m6-486p-9j8p · GitHub Advisory Database · CC BY 4.0
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