Cardano Network Integrity Compromised by Oversized Hash Transaction Flaw ∞ Security

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Briefing

The Cardano network experienced a critical system-level partition after a bug delegation transaction containing an oversized hash successfully bypassed the protocol’s initial validation layer. This exploit immediately compromised the network’s consensus mechanism, forcing a temporary chain split into two competing histories and leading to a sharp decline in market sentiment. The incident, which exposed a legacy vulnerability dating back to 2022, necessitated an urgent node software upgrade to versions 10.5.2 and 10.5.3 across all Stake Pool Operators. While no user funds were compromised, the event highlights a severe risk to network stability.

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Context

Core blockchain protocols, despite their high-assurance design, maintain a persistent risk surface from legacy code that has not been formally audited against modern adversarial inputs. The architecture of a distributed ledger inherently relies on the absolute integrity of transaction validation to maintain a single, canonical history. This reliance means any flaw in the initial validation logic, especially one dating back years, represents a critical, unmitigated systemic risk to the entire network’s operation.

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Analysis

The attack vector specifically targeted the transaction validation logic within the core protocol node software. The attacker crafted a bug delegation transaction where an input parameter, an oversized hash, was able to bypass the established validation checks due to a legacy vulnerability. This successful bypass of the integrity controls allowed the malformed transaction to propagate, causing different nodes to process the block differently and ultimately resulting in the network partitioning into divergent chains. The root cause was a failure in input sanitization, which permitted an out-of-spec data structure to corrupt the deterministic consensus process.

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Parameters

Vulnerability Type ∞ Legacy Input Validation Flaw (Oversized Hash) – A flaw in the protocol’s transaction validation logic dating back to 2022.
Affected System ∞ Cardano Core Protocol Node Software – The foundational software governing block processing and consensus.
Immediate Consequence ∞ Network Partition (Chain Split) – The network temporarily fractured into two competing transaction histories.
Mitigation Required ∞ Urgent Node Software Upgrade (Versions 10.5.2 / 10.5.3) – Mandatory software update for all Stake Pool Operators and exchanges.

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Outlook

The immediate mitigation is the mandatory upgrade to node versions 10.5.2 and 10.5.3 for all Stake Pool Operators and exchanges to reconcile the chain histories and restore a single consensus. This event serves as a critical warning regarding the systemic risk of deep, unpatched legacy vulnerabilities in core protocol layers. Moving forward, the industry must establish new, continuous formal verification standards that specifically audit foundational code for input sanitization and boundary condition failures to prevent future network-level integrity compromises.

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Verdict

This network partition event underscores that fundamental blockchain integrity is a non-negotiable security priority, demanding continuous, deep-level auditing of all legacy protocol code.

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