Code Bug Exploit Sends Bitcoin Unlimited Nodes Offline

Nearly 70% of nodes operating Bitcoin Unlimited went offline in the present day as phrase emerged of a bug within the software program’s code.

The bug opened a vulnerability by way of which a sure sort of message despatched to nodes might trigger them to be taken offline. Nodes are liable for validating the transactions on a blockchain, sustaining a duplicate of the transaction historical past’s complete file and basically implementing the principles of the community by way of the code.

The concern was initially flagged on GitHub by BU developer Peter Tschipper. Details then unfold on social media, sparking widespread commentary from each supporters and critics of the challenge.

That dialogue – and highlighting of the bug – was adopted by an obvious exploit that despatched the node rely plunging. BU builders have since moved to release a patch for the bug.

During the assault, the BU node rely slipped to as little as 252, in line with cryptocurrency knowledge web site Coin.Dance, whereas knowledge web site Bitnodes confirmed roughly 265 nodes on-line on the time.

In whole, as many as 780 BU nodes had been on-line previous to the drop, knowledge from Coin.Dance reveals, and as of press time, 240 BU nodes are on-line. To get a way of the dimensions, roughly 6,100 nodes make up the bitcoin community’s international ecosystem, in line with Bitnodes.

BU is an alternate implementation of the bitcoin software program, which amongst different modifications seeks to place in place a user-configured transaction block dimension as a way to scale the community. The software program challenge emerged amidst the broader debate over methods to scale the transaction capability of the community.

BU has drawn each sturdy supporters and sharp critics, with some arguing that it supplies a path to scale the community whereas others have criticized its strategy to increasing the block dimension.

Read CoinDesk’s current explainer on Bitcoin Unlimited here.

Chart through Coin.Dance; Image through Shutterstock