CVE-2026-34068

nimiq-transaction: UpdateValidator transactions allows voting key change without proof-of-knowledge

MEDIUM
6.8
CVSS Score
Published: April 22, 2026 at 07:55 PM UTC
Updated: October 26, 2026 at 10:10 PM UTC
1 product affected across 1 vendorNimiq Proof of Stake

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Severity
MEDIUM6.8
Exploit prediction
EPSS 0.2%
SSVC
No known exploit

Description

nimiq-transaction provides the transaction primitive to be used in Nimiq's Rust implementation. Prior to version 1.3.0, the staking contract accepts `UpdateValidator` transactions that set `new_voting_key=Some(...)` while omitting `new_proof_of_knowledge`. this skips the proof-of-knowledge requirement that is needed to prevent BLS rogue-key attacks when public keys are aggregated. Because tendermint macro block justification verification aggregates validator voting keys and verifies a single aggregated BLS signature against that aggregate public key, a rogue-key voting key in the validator set can allow an attacker to forge a quorum-looking justification while only producing a single signature. While the impact is critical, the exploitability is low: The voting keys are fixed for the epoch, so the attacker would need to know the next epoch validator set (chosen through VRF), which is unlikely. The patch for this vulnerability is included as part of v1.3.0. No known workarounds are available.

Affected

Our own answer: ranges merged, affected separated from platform-only, with confidence and review flags.

v < 1.3.0
Affected range stops below 1.3.0, so it looks safe — our inference, not a vendor statement

References (4)

x_refsource_CONFIRMPatchVendor Advisory
Source: cverecord
https://github.com/nimiq/core-rs-albatross/security/advisories/GHSA-pf4j-pf3w-95f9
x_refsource_MISCIssue TrackingPatch
Source: cverecord
https://github.com/nimiq/core-rs-albatross/pull/3654
x_refsource_MISCRelease Notes
Source: cverecord
https://github.com/nimiq/core-rs-albatross/releases/tag/v1.3.0

SSVC — Action Prioritization

SSVCNo known exploitNot automatablePartial impact

SSVC signals action urgency (what to patch first), separate from CVSS which measures severity.

CVSS

6.8MEDIUMGitHub_M
Attack Vector
NETWORK
Complexity
HIGH
Privileges
NONE
User Interaction
NONE
Scope
CHANGED
Confidentiality
NONE
Integrity
HIGH
Availability
NONE
Vector?

Quick Info

StatusANALYZED
CWE
CWE-347

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