Protocol: >> Libp2p-Gossipsub >> 0.42.1 Security Vulnerabilities
libp2p-rust is the official rust language Implementation of the libp2p networking stack. Prior to version 0.49.4, the Rust libp2p Gossipsub implementation contains a remotely reachable panic in backoff expiry handling. After a peer sends a crafted PRUNE control message with an attacker-controlled, near-maximum backoff value, the value is accepted and stored as an Instant near the representable upper bound. On a later heartbeat, the implementation performs unchecked Instant + Duration arithmetic (backoff_time + slack), which can overflow and panic with: overflow when adding duration to instant. This issue is reachable from any Gossipsub peer over normal TCP + Noise + mplex/yamux connectivity and requires no further authentication beyond becoming a protocol peer. This issue has been patched in version 0.49.4.
CVSS Score
8.2
EPSS Score
0.001
Published
2026-03-31
libp2p-rust is the official rust language Implementation of the libp2p networking stack. In versions prior to 0.49.3, the Gossipsub implementation accepts attacker-controlled PRUNE backoff values and may perform unchecked time arithmetic when storing backoff state. A specially crafted PRUNE control message with an extremely large backoff (e.g. u64::MAX) can lead to Duration/Instant overflow during backoff update logic, triggering a panic in the networking state machine. This is remotely reachable over a normal libp2p connection and does not require authentication. Any application exposing a libp2p Gossipsub listener and using the affected backoff-handling path can be crashed by a network attacker that can reach the service port. The attack can be repeated by reconnecting and replaying the crafted control message. This issue has been fixed in version 0.49.3.
CVSS Score
8.7
EPSS Score
0.0
Published
2026-03-20