# CVE-2023-40591: Denial of service via malicious p2p message in go-ethereum

> Attackers can cause denial of service in go-ethereum nodes by sending malicious p2p messages that trigger unbounded memory consumption.

- **Severity:** High 7.5 (`CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H`)
- **Exploited in the wild:** Not known
- **Login needed:** Not needed
- **Attackable:** Over the internet
- **Victim action needed:** Not needed
- **Fix available:** Yes
- **Published:** 6 Sep 2023
- **Updated:** 26 Sep 2024
- **Also known as:** GHSA-ppjg-v974-84cm, GO-2023-2046

## What is CVE-2023-40591?

CVE-2023-40591 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in go-ethereum, published on 6 Sep 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.

### Official description

go-ethereum (geth) is a golang execution layer implementation of the Ethereum protocol. A vulnerable node, can be made to consume unbounded amounts of memory when handling specially crafted p2p messages sent from an attacker node. The fix is included in geth version `1.12.1-stable`, i.e, `1.12.2-unstable` and onwards. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.

Weakness: CWE-400 (Uncontrolled Resource Consumption)

## Which versions are affected by CVE-2023-40591?

3 open source packages ship an affected version, including github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum. It affects 1 product.


| Package | Ecosystem | Affected | Fixed in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum` | Go | All versions | 1.12.1 |
| `github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum` | Go | All versions | 1.12.1-stable |
| `github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum` | Go | All versions | 1.12.1-stable |

Products: Ethereum Go Ethereum.

## How do I fix CVE-2023-40591?

Upgrade github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum to a fixed version for your release line: 1.12.1 or 1.12.1-stable.

## Is CVE-2023-40591 being exploited?

There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-40591 in the wild and no public exploit code.

## Other vulnerabilities in go-ethereum

- [CVE-2026-26314](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2026-26314/): Go Ethereum affected by DoS via malicious p2p message (high 8.7)
- [CVE-2023-42319](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-42319/): go-ethereum vulnerable to denial of service via crafted GraphQL query (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2021-42219](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2021-42219/): Denial of service in go-ethereum (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2022-23327](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-23327/): Denial of Service in Go-Ethereum (high 7.5)
- [CVE-2022-23328](https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2022-23328/): Denial of Service in Go-Ethereum (high 7.5)

## Fix prompt for AI coding agents

```text
Check this codebase for CVE-2023-40591 and fix it if it is affected.

What it is: CVE-2023-40591 is a high-severity denial of service vulnerability in go-ethereum, published on 6 Sep 2023. An attacker can exploit it over the internet without logging in, with no action from the victim.
Exploitation: There is no known exploitation of CVE-2023-40591 in the wild and no public exploit code.

Affected packages and fixed versions:
- github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum (Go): affected all versions; fixed in 1.12.1
- github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum (Go): affected all versions; fixed in 1.12.1-stable
- github.com/ethereum/go-ethereum (Go): affected all versions; fixed in 1.12.1-stable

Task:
1. Search the dependency manifests and lockfiles (for example package.json, package-lock.json, requirements.txt, poetry.lock, uv.lock, pom.xml, build.gradle, go.mod, Cargo.lock, Gemfile.lock) and any Dockerfiles for the affected packages, including transitive dependencies.
2. If an affected version is in use, upgrade it to the fixed version for its release line with the project's package manager, so the lockfile is regenerated. Prefer the smallest upgrade that fixes it.
3. If there is no fix, or the upgrade would break the build, do not guess: explain the risk and the safest workaround instead.
4. Run the tests and summarise what changed and why.
5. If nothing in the project is affected, say so and change nothing.

Reference: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-40591/ (Markdown: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-40591/index.md)
```

## Sources

- CVE record: https://www.cve.org/CVERecord?id=CVE-2023-40591
- NVD: https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2023-40591
- OSV: https://osv.dev/vulnerability/CVE-2023-40591

---
From sbomify Insights: https://insights.sbomify.com/CVE-2023-40591/
Summaries are generated and may contain mistakes; the official description above is the record.