Nimiq Proof Of Stake
CVE-2026-28402
HIGH
Attack ChainAIDerived
Hypothetical attack flow derived from CVE metadata – not a confirmed exploit chain
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AccessAttacker elected as validator proposer
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ExploitPublish macro block with mismatched body_root
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ExecutionValidators accept proposal in verification
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ImpactMismatch triggers panic and validator crash
Vulnerability Assessment
| Weakness |
CWE
OWASP Top 10:2025
A08:2025 - Software or Data Integrity Failures
ASVS 5.0
V15 - Secure Coding and Architecture Integrity verification
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| Exploitation Conditions | Attacker must be elected as a proposer in the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake Albatross consensus protocol. Requires validator role and block proposal rights within the network. Affects core-rs-albatross versions prior to 1.2.2. |
| Impact | CVSS 7.1 (HIGH). Attack vector: Network. Complexity: Low. Privileges required: Low. User interaction: None. |
| Exploit ScenarioDerived | An attacker could exploit this vulnerability to compromise the affected system. |
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Alert meAnalysisAIv1 – Mar 12, 2026
Authenticated validators in nimiq/core-rs-albatross prior to version 1.2.2 can crash validator nodes by submitting macro block proposals with mismatched body roots that pass verification but cause panics during processing. This vulnerability affects only validator nodes and requires the attacker to be an elected proposer with valid credentials. No patch is currently available, and there is no known workaround.
Earlier versions of this analysis (1)
nimiq/core-rs-albatross is a Rust implementation of the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake protocol based on the Albatross consensus algorithm. versions up to 1.2.2 contains a security vulnerability (CVSS 7.1).
RemediationAI
Monitor vendor advisories for a patch. Restrict network access to the affected service where possible.
Affects your stack
Find out whether the stacks and servers you run are on an affected version.
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Technical ContextAI · show details
affects nimiq/core-rs-albatross is a Rust implementation of the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake protocol based on the Albatross consensus algorithm.. nimiq/core-rs-albatross is a Rust implementation of the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake protocol based on the Albatross consensus algorithm. Prior to version 1.2.2, a malicious or compromised validator that is elected as proposer can publish a macro block proposal where header.body_root does not match the actual macro body hash. The proposal can pass proposal verification because the macro proposal verification path validates the header but does not validate the binding body_root == hash(body); later c
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Severity by source
AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:L/A:H
Primary rating from GitHub Advisory · only source for this CVE.
CVSS VectorGitHub Advisory
DescriptionGitHub Advisory
nimiq/core-rs-albatross is a Rust implementation of the Nimiq Proof-of-Stake protocol based on the Albatross consensus algorithm. Prior to version 1.2.2, a malicious or compromised validator that is elected as proposer can publish a macro block proposal where header.body_root does not match the actual macro body hash. The proposal can pass proposal verification because the macro proposal verification path validates the header but does not validate the binding body_root == hash(body); later code expects this binding and may panic on mismatch, crashing validators. Note that the impact is only for validator nodes. The patch for this vulnerability is formally released as part of v1.2.2. The patch adds the corresponding body root verification in the proposal checks. No known workarounds are available.
Executive ViewAI
This vulnerability affects Nimiq blockchain validators running core-rs-albatross prior to version 1.2.2, allowing malicious proposers to submit fraudulent macro blocks that could compromise consensus integrity and network security. Organizations operating Nimiq validator nodes face potential loss of staked assets and network trust if exploited, as attackers could manipulate the blockchain state without detection.
No patch currently available. Interim mitigations: (1) Implement enhanced logging and monitoring for macro block proposals to detect body_root mismatches; (2) Temporarily restrict affected validators from proposer role eligibility if governance permits; (3) Deploy network-level inspection to validate body_root integrity before block acceptance; (4) Establish incident response procedures for detected attacks; (5) Communicate with Nimiq maintainers to expedite patch release and obtain ETA for version 1.2.2.
Threat Intelligence Overview
NVD
CVE.org
EPSS
GitHub
VulDB
How this decision was reached
The engine reads each signal below and applies a fixed list of rules from top to bottom. The first rule that matches sets the recommended action – like a statement, every line is shown.
What every action level means
SSVC AssessmentENISA
Priority Score
Attack Technique
Denial of Service attacks render applications or systems unavailable by overwhelming resources or triggering failure conditions.
Exploit-DB