A newly disclosed transaction-relay jamming vulnerability has raised concerns about the security of Bitcoin nodes, particularly in the context of time-sensitive contracting protocols like the Lightning Network.
This attack exploits the transaction selection, announcement, and propagation mechanisms of Bitcoin’s base-layer full nodes, potentially enabling attackers to disrupt transactions and steal funds from Lightning channels.
The vulnerability involves two variations of a “transaction-relay throughput attack”: the “high overflow” and “low overflow” variants. These attacks target specific limits in Bitcoin’s transaction-relay system:
Leveraging 2024 MITRE ATT&CK Results for SME & MSP Cybersecurity Leaders – Attend Free Webinar
Both attacks exploit inherent throughput limitations in Bitcoin’s peer-to-peer network, making them particularly concerning for systems relying on timely transaction propagation.
According to the report shared by Ariard in Github, the Lightning Network, which relies on pre-signed, time-sensitive transactions to secure off-chain payments, is especially vulnerable to these attacks.
For instance, in the high overflow attack scenario, an attacker could prevent a victim’s justice or timeout transactions from propagating before their timelocks expire. This could allow an attacker to claim funds unfairly or cause financial loss to channel participants.
Several mitigation strategies have been proposed to counter these attacks:
While these measures provide some protection, experts agree that addressing the issue at Bitcoin’s base layer would offer more robust and long-term solutions.
The vulnerability was initially reported to prominent Bitcoin and Lightning developers in mid-2023. After months of discussions and testing, it was publicly disclosed in December 2024. The attack is currently being tracked under CVE Request 1780258 by MITRE.
This new transaction-relay jamming vulnerability highlights critical weaknesses in Bitcoin’s transaction-relay mechanisms that can be exploited against off-chain protocols like the Lightning Network.
While no real-world exploits have been observed yet, further research and mitigation efforts are essential to safeguard users against these sophisticated attacks.
Investigate Real-World Malicious Links,Malware & Phishing Attacks With ANY.RUN - Try for Free
A recent campaign dubbed FLUX#CONSOLE has come to light, leveraging Microsoft Common Console Document (.MSC) files to…
The Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center…
Malicious actors have taken cybercrime to new heights by exploiting captcha verification pages, a typically…
Critical Authentication Bypass Vulnerability Identified in Hitachi Infrastructure Analytics Advisor and Ops Center Analyzer. A…
The healthcare communication platform ConnectOnCall, operated by ConnectOnCall.com, LLC, has confirmed a significant data breach…
Kali Linux has unveiled its final release for 2024, version Kali Linux 2024.4, packed with…