CVE-2025-54604 is a vulnerability identified in Bitcoin Core versions up to 29.0 that enables an attacker to trigger uncontrolled resource consumption, classified under CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption). This flaw allows remote attackers to exhaust system resources such as CPU, memory, or network bandwidth, leading to denial of service (DoS) conditions. The vulnerability can be exploited without any authentication or user interaction, increasing its risk profile. The CVSS 3.1 base score of 7.5 reflects a high severity, with an attack vector of network (AV:N), low attack complexity (AC:L), no privileges required (PR:N), and no user interaction (UI:N). The impact is limited to availability (A:H), with no confidentiality or integrity impacts. Bitcoin Core is a critical component of the Bitcoin network, used by many organizations and individuals to run full nodes, validate transactions, and maintain blockchain integrity. An attacker exploiting this vulnerability could disrupt node operations, degrade network performance, or cause service outages, impacting the reliability of Bitcoin-related services. Although no patches or exploits are currently documented, the vulnerability's presence necessitates proactive mitigation. The lack of affected version specifics suggests all versions through 29.0 are vulnerable. The vulnerability was reserved in July 2025 and published in October 2025, indicating recent discovery and disclosure.

For European organizations, the primary impact of CVE-2025-54604 is the potential disruption of Bitcoin Core nodes and related services due to denial of service from resource exhaustion. This can affect cryptocurrency exchanges, wallet providers, financial institutions, and blockchain infrastructure operators relying on Bitcoin Core for transaction validation and network participation. Service outages could lead to financial losses, reputational damage, and reduced trust in cryptocurrency services. Additionally, degraded node performance can impact the overall Bitcoin network's stability and transaction processing speed, indirectly affecting European users and businesses. Organizations with critical dependencies on Bitcoin Core infrastructure may face operational challenges and increased costs due to downtime and recovery efforts. The vulnerability's remote exploitability without authentication increases the risk of widespread attacks, especially targeting high-value nodes or infrastructure hubs within Europe.

1. Monitor resource usage on Bitcoin Core nodes closely to detect abnormal spikes in CPU, memory, or network consumption that may indicate exploitation attempts. 2. Implement network-level protections such as rate limiting, firewall rules, and intrusion detection systems to restrict and monitor incoming traffic to Bitcoin Core nodes, reducing exposure to potential attacks. 3. Segregate Bitcoin Core infrastructure from other critical systems to contain the impact of any resource exhaustion events. 4. Stay informed about official Bitcoin Core updates and apply patches promptly once available to remediate the vulnerability. 5. Consider deploying redundant nodes and load balancing to maintain service availability in case some nodes are affected. 6. Engage with the Bitcoin Core community and security mailing lists to receive timely information about fixes and mitigation strategies. 7. Conduct regular security assessments and stress testing to evaluate resilience against resource exhaustion attacks. 8. Limit public exposure of Bitcoin Core RPC interfaces and ensure they are protected by strong authentication and network controls.