nimiq-primitives: Out-of-bounds panic in KeyNibbles::Add from oversized child suffix in a deserialized proof

Exploitation

No confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next marks exploitation only from CISA KEV.

CVSS

3.7 · CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:L

EPSS

• CVE-2026-54542: 0.44% estimated exploitation activity in the next 30 days; percentile 38.56 (FIRST EPSS, 2026-11-03). This is a model estimate, not proof of exploitation or customer exposure.

As published by the source; long descriptions are shortened.

Impact A malicious peer acting as a state-sync source can crash a syncing node with a crafted TrieChunk whose proof contains a TrieNodeChild whose suffix, when concatenated with the parent key via KeyNibbles::Add, exceeds the fixed 63-byte backing array. Add (primitives/src/keynibbles.rs:332 / :341) indexes bytes[self.byteslen()..self.byteslen() + other.byteslen()] with no combined-length check, causing an out-of-bounds slice panic (both the even- and odd-length branches). KeyNibbles deserialization validates only the individual length <= 126, not the combined parent + suffix length. The panic occurs at putchunk → child.key() → isstump() → +, i.e. before proof.verify(), so no valid proof is required. As with the related childindex issue, exploitation requires being the victim's sync peer during state sync, and the resulting crash is transient (the node restarts and re-syncs). Affected: core-rs-albatross <= 1.5.1 (nimiq-primitives). Patches Fixed in 1.6.0 via…

Published by the source

16 Jul 2026, 20:03 UTC

Last modified by the source

16 Jul 2026, 20:03 UTC

Source last checked

26 Oct 2026, 15:43 UTC

1. Revision 1 · created · 26 Oct 2026

   Published from ghsa record GHSA-5rg2-xv9j-gv5p

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# Patch Next advisory brief: CVE-2026-54542

Advisory: nimiq-primitives: Out-of-bounds panic in KeyNibbles::Add from oversized child suffix in a deserialized proof
IDs: CVE-2026-54542, GHSA-5rg2-xv9j-gv5p
Record: https://patchnext.com/advisories/cve-2026-54542 (revision 1, source checked 26 Oct 2026, 15:43 UTC)
Inventory: none attached. This brief comes from a public page and does not say whether any deployment is affected.
Severity: Low (CVSS 3.7)
Exploitation: no confirmed exploitation recorded. Patch Next confirms exploitation only from CISA KEV.
Vendor response: Vendor fix available; fixed versions by package: nimiq-primitives 1.6.0. A vendor fix does not mean a deployment is fixed.

## Affected components
- crates.io nimiq-primitives: affected < 1.6.0; fixed in 1.6.0

## Suggested inspection (read-only)
- crates.io nimiq-primitives: check the installed version with your package manager.

## Supported action
Upgrade each affected component to a fixed version on its release line. For a transitive dependency, upgrade the parent package or add an override or constraint, then regenerate the lockfile. Redeploy every environment that ran an affected version.

## Required regression checks
- Run the test suite and a production build.
- Exercise the features that depend on nimiq-primitives.
- Repeat the inspection and confirm that only fixed versions remain installed.

## Rollback considerations
- Keep the previous lockfile and deployment artifact. Rolling back reinstates the vulnerable version, so apply any documented mitigation while you fix forward.

## Unresolved questions
- Which deployments run an affected version?
- Exploitation status can change. Check again before lowering the priority.
- Mark the work resolved only after the fixed version is verified in production.

## Sources
- Verified: https://github.com/advisories/GHSA-5rg2-xv9j-gv5p (GitHub-reviewed advisory GHSA-5rg2-xv9j-gv5p lists affected ranges: crates.io nimiq-primitives >=0 <1.6.0)

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