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VulnerabilityPublished

CVE-2024-52920: Bitcoin Core · Unthrottled Resource Allocation

Source CVE Database V5

0

Not known to be exploited · CVSS 7.5 High · fixed in 0.20.0 : patch affected systems soon.

Data as of 26 Oct 2026, 17:16 UTC

CVSS 3.1 base score
7.5High
How severe the flaw is on the 0–10 CVSS scale.
EPSS
0.6% chance of exploitation in 30 days – higher than 50% of CVEsExploit Prediction Scoring System: the likelihood attackers will use this flaw soon.
Patch
Available – fixed in 0.20.0
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H

Exploitation evidence

  1. Disclosed: evidence found.

    CVE published 18 Nov 2024

  2. Detectable: no evidence on record.

    No public nuclei template indexed

  3. Weaponised: no evidence on record.

    No public exploit code indexed in Metasploit or Exploit-DB

  4. Exploited in the wild: no evidence on record.

    Not in CISA KEV and no source reports exploitation

  5. Observed by OffSeq Mirage: no evidence on record.

    No attack traffic recorded by OffSeq Mirage sensors

A missing step is not evidence of safety. Sources: cve.org (opens in a new tab), the Metasploit, Exploit-DB and nuclei-templates index as of 26 Oct 2026.

What to do

AI-suggested

  1. Upgrade Bitcoin Core nodes to version 0.20.0 or later, where the vulnerability is fixed.
  2. If immediate upgrade is not possible, implement network-level filtering to detect and block malformed GETDATA messages that do not conform to protocol specifications.
  3. Employ rate limiting on incoming GETDATA requests to prevent resource exhaustion from excessive or malformed messages.
  4. Monitor node logs and network traffic for unusual patterns or repeated malformed GETDATA messages indicative of exploitation attempts.
  5. Use intrusion detection/prevention systems (IDS/IPS) with signatures tailored to detect this specific malformed message attack.
  6. Maintain regular backups and ensure node redundancy to minimize service disruption if a node becomes unresponsive.
  7. Participate in Bitcoin community security advisories to stay informed about patches and emerging threats related to Bitcoin Core.

Description

Bitcoin Core before 0.20.0 allows remote attackers to cause a denial of service (infinite loop) via a malformed GETDATA message.

References

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