CVE-2023-34450Network attack vector

Node interruption via PeerState JSON serialization deadlock

Published Jul 3, 2023 · Updated Oct 29, 2024

Denial of service in CometBFT 0.34.28 and 0.37.1 allows remote attackers to interrupt node operation via a consensus-state RPC. PeerState.MarshalJSON locks the PeerState mutex and then serializes fields whose JSON marshaling attempts to acquire the same lock, leaving the goroutine blocked. The RPC path requires dump_consensus_state exposure and typically drops one peer until timeout, while debug consensus logging with JSON output can deadlock most goroutines and halt a node.

CVSS severity3.7
Low
EPSS probability0.85%
Next 30 days · Sep 16, 2026
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Based on sourced intelligence
Hinoki checkNot available
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Summary

What happened

Denial of service in CometBFT 0.34.28 and 0.37.1 allows remote attackers to interrupt node operation via a consensus-state RPC. PeerState.MarshalJSON locks the PeerState mutex and then serializes fields whose JSON marshaling attempts to acquire the same lock, leaving the goroutine blocked. The RPC path requires dump_consensus_state exposure and typically drops one peer until timeout, while debug consensus logging with JSON output can deadlock most goroutines and halt a node.

The record

CVE
CVE-2023-34450
Published
Jul 3, 2023
Updated
Oct 29, 2024
Vendor
CometBFT
Product
CometBFT
Classifications
CWE-770, CWE-401, T1499.004
Attack vector
network
Privileges
unauthenticated

Timeline

How it unfolded

  1. Jul 3, 2023CVE publishedPublication date reported by the CVE source.
  2. Oct 29, 2024Record updatedLatest update available in the CVE record.

Exploitability

Present is not the same as exploitable

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Is a vulnerable build present?

Compare these published version ranges with your installed build and any vendor patches.

  1. Affected versionversion== 0.34.28
  2. Affected versionversion== 0.37.1

What conditions does exploitation require?

Attack vectornetwork
Required privilegesunauthenticated

What is affected?

CometBFT · CometBFTversion== 0.34.28; version== 0.37.1

Published CVSS scores

3.7GitHub, Inc.CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L
5.3NIST NVDCVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L

CVSS describes severity. EPSS estimates exploitation probability.

Attacks

What attackers are doing with it

Daily unique IPs observed by Shadowserver honeypots for known exploited vulnerabilities (KEVs). Missing observations do not establish an absence of attacks.

Daily unique IPsNo honeypot observations are available for this CVE in the selected window.

No observations available

Sep 10, 2026Sep 16, 2026
Latest reporting daySep 16, 2026
Latest daily unique IPsUnavailable
Prior 30-day averageUnavailable
SourceShadowserver honeypots (KEV)
Vectornetwork
Privilegesunauthenticated
Known exploitationUnconfirmed
Public exploitUnconfirmed

Weakness, pattern, technique

CWE-770Allocation of Resources Without Limits or Throttling
CWE-401Missing Release of Memory after Effective Lifetime
T1499.004Application or System Exploitation

Public exploit references

No public exploit references are available in this record.

Labels summarize the accepted research assessment. They do not indicate a test against your environment.

Technologies

Your stack

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Your stack

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