How severe is GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4?

No CVSS score has been assigned to GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 yet. Review the advisory details and affected package list to assess your exposure.

Which packages are affected by GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4?

GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 affects the following packages: github.com/cometbft/cometbft (Go). Ecosystems affected: Go.

How do I fix GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4?

Update github.com/cometbft/cometbft to 0.38.3 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.

How do I detect GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 in my Go dependencies?

Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/cometbft/cometbft, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.

How do I mitigate GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 if there is no patch (or I can't update yet)?

If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.

Is GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 actively exploited in the wild?

No public exploit code has been indexed for GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 yet. This does not mean the vulnerability cannot be exploited — absence of public exploits does not imply safety. Apply the recommended fix and use O3 Security to monitor your exposure.

When was GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 published, and has it been updated?

GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 was published on January 19, 2024 and was last updated on January 23, 2024. Advisory data evolves as severity scores, affected ranges, and exploit intelligence are revised — always check the latest version of the advisory before acting.

🐹 Go

Not in CISA KEV

Validation of `VoteExtensionsEnableHeight` can cause chain halt in Go package github.com/cometbft/cometbftGHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4

Fix: cometbft/cometbft@5fbc973

GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 is a security vulnerability in github.com/cometbft/cometbft. A fix is available for github.com/cometbft/cometbft — see the affected versions and patch details below.

Also known asGO-2024-2471

Published

Jan 19, 2024

Updated

Jan 23, 2024

Affected

1 pkg

Patched

1 / 1

Exploits

None indexed

Exploitation data as of Jan 23, 2024 · OSV.dev, FIRST.org (EPSS)

Real-World Exposure

1 pkg affected

🐹github.com/cometbft/cometbft

Real-time download stats are indexed for npm and PyPI packages. This vulnerability affects Go packages — download data is not available via public APIs for these ecosystems.

Description

Summary

A vulnerability in CometBFT’s validation logic for VoteExtensionsEnableHeight can result in a chain halt when triggered through a governance parameter change proposal on an ABCI2 Application Chain. If a parameter change proposal including a VoteExtensionsEnableHeight modification is passed, nodes running the affected versions may panic, halting the network.

The CometBFT team addressed this issue by improving validation logic for the VoteExtensionsEnableHeight to correctly handle governance proposals addressing this parameter.

Next Steps for Impacted Parties

If you are a chain developer with an active network running on CometBFT v. 0.38.x, we recommend updating your chain application to v0.38.3 or later of CometBFT to patch this issue.

This issue can be resolved with a “soft patch” to an active network, i.e. nodes can be patched and restarted at different times without the need for a coordinated upgrade that halts a chain. If this patching methodology is used, the risk of a network halt triggered by this issue is mitigated once more than 66.7% of voting power on the network has applied the update, which provides protection from exploitation while on-chain governance processes for software upgrades take place. Once all validator nodes operating a network have been updated, the risk of a network halt due to this issue will be fully resolved.

For more information about CometBFT, see https://docs.cometbft.com/.

This issue was found by Dongsam (@b_harvest) who reported it to the Cosmos Bug Bounty Program on HackerOne on January 15, 2024. If you believe you have found a bug in the Interchain Stack or would like to contribute to the program by reporting a bug, please see https://hackerone.com/cosmos.

Affected Packages

1 total 1 fixed

Ecosystem	Package	Vulnerable range	Fix
🐹Go	`github.com/cometbft/cometbft`	≥ 0.38.0&&< 0.38.3	0.38.3`go get github.com/cometbft/cometbft@v0.38.3`

Detection & mitigation playbook

Open-source dependency

Detect
Scan your dependency tree (package-lock.json, pnpm-lock.yaml, requirements.txt, go.sum, etc.) for github.com/cometbft/cometbft, including transitive dependencies — a direct dependency you never call can still pull in a vulnerable version.
Fix
Update github.com/cometbft/cometbft to 0.38.3 or later, then make sure no transitive (indirect) dependency still pins the vulnerable range — O3 confirms GHSA-qr8r-m495-7hc4 is resolved across your whole dependency graph.
Workarounds
If you can't upgrade right away: gate or disable the affected feature, validate untrusted input at the boundary, and avoid passing attacker-controlled data into the vulnerable path. O3's runtime protection blocks exploitation in production as an interim safeguard until the upgrade lands.

Frequently Asked Questions

## Summary A vulnerability in CometBFT’s validation logic for `VoteExtensionsEnableHeight` can result in a chain halt when triggered through a governance parameter change proposal on an ABCI2 Application Chain. If a parameter change proposal including a `VoteExtensionsEnableHeight` modification is passed, nodes running the affected versions may panic, halting the network. The CometBFT team addressed this issue by improving validation logic for the `VoteExtensionsEnableHeight` to correctly handle governance proposals addressing this parameter. ## Next Steps for Impacted Parties If you are a

O3 Security · Impact-Aware SCA

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