CVE-2023-46132

What it is

Hyperledger Fabric is an open source permissioned distributed ledger framework. Combining two molecules to one another, called "cross-linking" results in a molecule with a chemical formula that is composed of all atoms of the original two molecules. In Fabric, one can take a block of transactions and cross-link the transactions in a way that alters the way the peers parse the transactions. If a first peer receives a block B and a second peer receives a block identical to B but with the transactions being cross-linked, the second peer will parse transactions in a different way and thus its world state will deviate from the first peer. Orderers or peers cannot detect that a block has its transactions cross-linked, because there is a vulnerability in the way Fabric hashes the transactions of blocks. It simply and naively concatenates them, which is insecure and lets an adversary craft a "cross-linked block" (block with cross-linked transactions) which alters the way peers process transactions. For example, it is possible to select a transaction and manipulate a peer to completely avoid processing it, without changing the computed hash of the block. Additional validations have been added in v2.2.14 and v2.5.5 to detect potential cross-linking issues before processing blocks. Users are advised to upgrade. There are no known workarounds for this vulnerability.

At a glance

Exploitability

Can be exploited over the network with a low-privilege account. High risk of data tampering.

Exploit odds

0.5% chance of exploitation in the next 30 days (EPSS).

Fix

A patch, advisory or fixed version is referenced. Upgrade or apply it.

Timeline

1. 2023-11-14 21:15 UTC PublishedDisclosed publicly on CVE.org and NVD
2. 2026-06-17 06:30 UTC Last updatedMost recent change to the record

Why it ranks here

• Exploited in the wild: no, CISA does not list it.
• Exploit odds: 0.5% in the next 30 days (EPSS).
• Severity: 7.1 HIGH (CVSS).
• Fix: a patch or advisory is linked.

Details

Published

2023-11-14 21:15 UTC

Last modified

2026-06-17 06:30 UTC

Exploit probability

0.5% · EPSS, next 30 days

Weakness

CWE-362 · Race condition

Record status

Modified

Affected

• Hyperledger Fabric < 2.2.14
• Hyperledger Fabric < 2.5.5

Attack profile CVSS 3.1 · 7.1

Attack vector

Network

Complexity

Low

Privileges needed

Low

User interaction

None

Scope

Unchanged

Confidentiality

None

Integrity

High

Availability

Low

Is it in your code?

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