CVE-2026-40880 (GCVE-0-2026-40880)

Vulnerability from cvelistv5 – Published: 2026-04-21 19:18 – Updated: 2026-04-21 19:52

Title

Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks

Summary

ZEBRA is a Zcash node written entirely in Rust. Prior to zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2, a logic error in Zebra's transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network. This vulnerability is fixed in zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2.

Severity

7.2 (High)


                        
                          CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H

SSVC

Exploitation: none Automatable: no Technical Impact: partial

CISA Coordinator · CISA-ADP (v2.0.3)

Decision recorded 2026-04-21 19:52 UTC

CWE

CWE-1025 - Comparison Using Wrong Factors

Assigner

GitHub_M mitre root Scorecard

References

1 reference

URL	Tags
https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security…	x_refsource_CONFIRM

Impacted products

2 products

Vendor	Product	Version	CPE status
ZcashFoundation	zebrad	Affected: < 4.3.1	guessed
ZcashFoundation	zebra-consensus	Affected: < 5.0.2	guessed

Show details on NVD website

JSON

To clipboard

{
  "containers": {
    "adp": [
      {
        "metrics": [
          {
            "other": {
              "content": {
                "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "Exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "Automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "Technical Impact": "partial"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-04-21T19:52:38.860835Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              },
              "type": "ssvc"
            }
          }
        ],
        "providerMetadata": {
          "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:52:58.880Z",
          "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
          "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
        },
        "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
      }
    ],
    "cna": {
      "affected": [
        {
          "product": "zebrad",
          "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003c 4.3.1"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "product": "zebra-consensus",
          "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003c 5.0.2"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "descriptions": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "ZEBRA is a Zcash node written entirely in Rust. Prior to zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2, a logic error in Zebra\u0027s transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network. This vulnerability is fixed in zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2."
        }
      ],
      "metrics": [
        {
          "cvssV4_0": {
            "attackComplexity": "LOW",
            "attackRequirements": "PRESENT",
            "attackVector": "NETWORK",
            "baseScore": 7.2,
            "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
            "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
            "subAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
            "subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
            "subIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
            "userInteraction": "NONE",
            "vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H",
            "version": "4.0",
            "vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
            "vulnConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
            "vulnIntegrityImpact": "HIGH"
          }
        }
      ],
      "problemTypes": [
        {
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "cweId": "CWE-1025",
              "description": "CWE-1025: Comparison Using Wrong Factors",
              "lang": "en",
              "type": "CWE"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "providerMetadata": {
        "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:18:22.657Z",
        "orgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
        "shortName": "GitHub_M"
      },
      "references": [
        {
          "name": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf",
          "tags": [
            "x_refsource_CONFIRM"
          ],
          "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf"
        }
      ],
      "source": {
        "advisory": "GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf",
        "discovery": "UNKNOWN"
      },
      "title": "Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks"
    }
  },
  "cveMetadata": {
    "assignerOrgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
    "assignerShortName": "GitHub_M",
    "cveId": "CVE-2026-40880",
    "datePublished": "2026-04-21T19:18:22.657Z",
    "dateReserved": "2026-04-15T15:57:41.719Z",
    "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:52:58.880Z",
    "state": "PUBLISHED"
  },
  "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
  "dataVersion": "5.2",
  "vulnerability-lookup:meta": {
    "epss": {
      "cve": "CVE-2026-40880",
      "date": "2026-10-02",
      "epss": "0.00444",
      "percentile": "0.36309"
    },
    "nvd": {
      "cve": {
        "affected": [
          {
            "affectedData": [
              {
                "product": "zebrad",
                "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
                "versions": [
                  {
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "\u003c 4.3.1"
                  }
                ]
              },
              {
                "product": "zebra-consensus",
                "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
                "versions": [
                  {
                    "status": "affected",
                    "version": "\u003c 5.0.2"
                  }
                ]
              }
            ],
            "source": "security-advisories@github.com"
          }
        ],
        "configurations": [
          {
            "nodes": [
              {
                "cpeMatch": [
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:a:zfnd:zebra-consensus:*:*:*:*:*:rust:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "EA4CC734-BCB2-4864-A7CC-B5D093489379",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "5.0.2",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  },
                  {
                    "criteria": "cpe:2.3:a:zfnd:zebrad:*:*:*:*:*:rust:*:*",
                    "matchCriteriaId": "0D5F3C05-ECFC-43B1-9168-8E114125F6B7",
                    "versionEndExcluding": "4.3.1",
                    "vulnerable": true
                  }
                ],
                "negate": false,
                "operator": "OR"
              }
            ]
          }
        ],
        "cveTags": [],
        "descriptions": [
          {
            "lang": "en",
            "value": "ZEBRA is a Zcash node written entirely in Rust. Prior to zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2, a logic error in Zebra\u0027s transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network. This vulnerability is fixed in zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2."
          }
        ],
        "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
        "lastModified": "2026-06-17T10:45:48.847",
        "metrics": {
          "cvssMetricV31": [
            {
              "cvssData": {
                "attackComplexity": "LOW",
                "attackVector": "NETWORK",
                "availabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "baseScore": 8.1,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "confidentialityImpact": "NONE",
                "integrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
                "scope": "UNCHANGED",
                "userInteraction": "NONE",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H",
                "version": "3.1"
              },
              "exploitabilityScore": 2.8,
              "impactScore": 5.2,
              "source": "nvd@nist.gov",
              "type": "Primary"
            }
          ],
          "cvssMetricV40": [
            {
              "cvssData": {
                "Automatable": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "Recovery": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "Safety": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "attackComplexity": "LOW",
                "attackRequirements": "PRESENT",
                "attackVector": "NETWORK",
                "availabilityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "baseScore": 7.2,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "confidentialityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "exploitMaturity": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "integrityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedAttackComplexity": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedAttackRequirements": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedAttackVector": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedPrivilegesRequired": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedSubAvailabilityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedSubConfidentialityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedSubIntegrityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedUserInteraction": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedVulnAvailabilityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedVulnConfidentialityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "modifiedVulnIntegrityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
                "providerUrgency": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "subAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
                "subIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "userInteraction": "NONE",
                "valueDensity": "NOT_DEFINED",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X",
                "version": "4.0",
                "vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "vulnConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
                "vulnIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "vulnerabilityResponseEffort": "NOT_DEFINED"
              },
              "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
              "type": "Secondary"
            }
          ],
          "ssvcV203": [
            {
              "source": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
              "ssvcData": {
                "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
                "options": [
                  {
                    "exploitation": "none"
                  },
                  {
                    "automatable": "no"
                  },
                  {
                    "technicalImpact": "partial"
                  }
                ],
                "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                "timestamp": "2026-04-21T19:52:38.860835Z",
                "version": "2.0.3"
              }
            }
          ]
        },
        "published": "2026-04-21T20:17:01.687",
        "references": [
          {
            "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
            "tags": [
              "Vendor Advisory"
            ],
            "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf"
          }
        ],
        "sourceIdentifier": "security-advisories@github.com",
        "vulnStatus": "Analyzed",
        "weaknesses": [
          {
            "description": [
              {
                "lang": "en",
                "value": "CWE-1025"
              }
            ],
            "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
            "type": "Secondary"
          }
        ]
      }
    },
    "redhat_vex": {
      "current_release_date": "2026-06-05T19:13:34+00:00",
      "cve": "CVE-2026-40880",
      "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
      "initial_release_date": "2026-01-01T00:00:00+00:00",
      "product_status:known_not_affected": "1",
      "source": "Red Hat CSAF VEX",
      "status": "final",
      "title": "Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks",
      "url": "https://security.access.redhat.com/data/csaf/v2/vex/2026/cve-2026-40880.json",
      "version": "3"
    },
    "vulnrichment": {
      "containers": {
        "adp": [
          {
            "metrics": [
              {
                "other": {
                  "content": {
                    "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
                    "options": [
                      {
                        "Exploitation": "none"
                      },
                      {
                        "Automatable": "no"
                      },
                      {
                        "Technical Impact": "partial"
                      }
                    ],
                    "role": "CISA Coordinator",
                    "timestamp": "2026-04-21T19:52:38.860835Z",
                    "version": "2.0.3"
                  },
                  "type": "ssvc"
                }
              }
            ],
            "providerMetadata": {
              "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:52:54.543Z",
              "orgId": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
              "shortName": "CISA-ADP"
            },
            "title": "CISA ADP Vulnrichment"
          }
        ],
        "cna": {
          "affected": [
            {
              "product": "zebrad",
              "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
              "versions": [
                {
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "\u003c 4.3.1"
                }
              ]
            },
            {
              "product": "zebra-consensus",
              "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
              "versions": [
                {
                  "status": "affected",
                  "version": "\u003c 5.0.2"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "descriptions": [
            {
              "lang": "en",
              "value": "ZEBRA is a Zcash node written entirely in Rust. Prior to zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2, a logic error in Zebra\u0027s transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network. This vulnerability is fixed in zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2."
            }
          ],
          "metrics": [
            {
              "cvssV4_0": {
                "attackComplexity": "LOW",
                "attackRequirements": "PRESENT",
                "attackVector": "NETWORK",
                "baseScore": 7.2,
                "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
                "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
                "subAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
                "subIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
                "userInteraction": "NONE",
                "vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H",
                "version": "4.0",
                "vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
                "vulnConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
                "vulnIntegrityImpact": "HIGH"
              }
            }
          ],
          "problemTypes": [
            {
              "descriptions": [
                {
                  "cweId": "CWE-1025",
                  "description": "CWE-1025: Comparison Using Wrong Factors",
                  "lang": "en",
                  "type": "CWE"
                }
              ]
            }
          ],
          "providerMetadata": {
            "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:18:22.657Z",
            "orgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
            "shortName": "GitHub_M"
          },
          "references": [
            {
              "name": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf",
              "tags": [
                "x_refsource_CONFIRM"
              ],
              "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf"
            }
          ],
          "source": {
            "advisory": "GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf",
            "discovery": "UNKNOWN"
          },
          "title": "Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks"
        }
      },
      "cveMetadata": {
        "assignerOrgId": "a0819718-46f1-4df5-94e2-005712e83aaa",
        "assignerShortName": "GitHub_M",
        "cveId": "CVE-2026-40880",
        "datePublished": "2026-04-21T19:18:22.657Z",
        "dateReserved": "2026-04-15T15:57:41.719Z",
        "dateUpdated": "2026-04-21T19:52:58.880Z",
        "state": "PUBLISHED"
      },
      "dataType": "CVE_RECORD",
      "dataVersion": "5.2"
    }
  }
}

FKIE_CVE-2026-40880

Vulnerability from fkie_nvd - Published: 2026-04-21 20:17 - Updated: 2026-06-17 10:45

Severity

8.1 (High) - CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H

Summary

References

	URL	Tags
	security-advisories@github.com	https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf	Vendor Advisory

Impacted products

	Vendor	Product	Version
	zfnd	zebra-consensus	*
	zfnd	zebrad	*

JSON

To clipboard

{
  "affected": [
    {
      "affectedData": [
        {
          "product": "zebrad",
          "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003c 4.3.1"
            }
          ]
        },
        {
          "product": "zebra-consensus",
          "vendor": "ZcashFoundation",
          "versions": [
            {
              "status": "affected",
              "version": "\u003c 5.0.2"
            }
          ]
        }
      ],
      "source": "security-advisories@github.com"
    }
  ],
  "configurations": [
    {
      "nodes": [
        {
          "cpeMatch": [
            {
              "criteria": "cpe:2.3:a:zfnd:zebra-consensus:*:*:*:*:*:rust:*:*",
              "matchCriteriaId": "EA4CC734-BCB2-4864-A7CC-B5D093489379",
              "versionEndExcluding": "5.0.2",
              "vulnerable": true
            },
            {
              "criteria": "cpe:2.3:a:zfnd:zebrad:*:*:*:*:*:rust:*:*",
              "matchCriteriaId": "0D5F3C05-ECFC-43B1-9168-8E114125F6B7",
              "versionEndExcluding": "4.3.1",
              "vulnerable": true
            }
          ],
          "negate": false,
          "operator": "OR"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "cveTags": [],
  "descriptions": [
    {
      "lang": "en",
      "value": "ZEBRA is a Zcash node written entirely in Rust. Prior to zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2, a logic error in Zebra\u0027s transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network. This vulnerability is fixed in zebrad version 4.3.1 and zebra-consensus version 5.0.2."
    }
  ],
  "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
  "lastModified": "2026-06-17T10:45:48.847",
  "metrics": {
    "cvssMetricV31": [
      {
        "cvssData": {
          "attackComplexity": "LOW",
          "attackVector": "NETWORK",
          "availabilityImpact": "HIGH",
          "baseScore": 8.1,
          "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
          "confidentialityImpact": "NONE",
          "integrityImpact": "HIGH",
          "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
          "scope": "UNCHANGED",
          "userInteraction": "NONE",
          "vectorString": "CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:H/A:H",
          "version": "3.1"
        },
        "exploitabilityScore": 2.8,
        "impactScore": 5.2,
        "source": "nvd@nist.gov",
        "type": "Primary"
      }
    ],
    "cvssMetricV40": [
      {
        "cvssData": {
          "Automatable": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "Recovery": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "Safety": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "attackComplexity": "LOW",
          "attackRequirements": "PRESENT",
          "attackVector": "NETWORK",
          "availabilityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "baseScore": 7.2,
          "baseSeverity": "HIGH",
          "confidentialityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "exploitMaturity": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "integrityRequirement": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedAttackComplexity": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedAttackRequirements": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedAttackVector": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedPrivilegesRequired": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedSubAvailabilityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedSubConfidentialityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedSubIntegrityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedUserInteraction": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedVulnAvailabilityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedVulnConfidentialityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "modifiedVulnIntegrityImpact": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "privilegesRequired": "LOW",
          "providerUrgency": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "subAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
          "subConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
          "subIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
          "userInteraction": "NONE",
          "valueDensity": "NOT_DEFINED",
          "vectorString": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H/E:X/CR:X/IR:X/AR:X/MAV:X/MAC:X/MAT:X/MPR:X/MUI:X/MVC:X/MVI:X/MVA:X/MSC:X/MSI:X/MSA:X/S:X/AU:X/R:X/V:X/RE:X/U:X",
          "version": "4.0",
          "vulnAvailabilityImpact": "HIGH",
          "vulnConfidentialityImpact": "NONE",
          "vulnIntegrityImpact": "HIGH",
          "vulnerabilityResponseEffort": "NOT_DEFINED"
        },
        "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
        "type": "Secondary"
      }
    ],
    "ssvcV203": [
      {
        "source": "134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0",
        "ssvcData": {
          "id": "CVE-2026-40880",
          "options": [
            {
              "exploitation": "none"
            },
            {
              "automatable": "no"
            },
            {
              "technicalImpact": "partial"
            }
          ],
          "role": "CISA Coordinator",
          "timestamp": "2026-04-21T19:52:38.860835Z",
          "version": "2.0.3"
        }
      }
    ]
  },
  "published": "2026-04-21T20:17:01.687",
  "references": [
    {
      "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
      "tags": [
        "Vendor Advisory"
      ],
      "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf"
    }
  ],
  "sourceIdentifier": "security-advisories@github.com",
  "vulnStatus": "Analyzed",
  "weaknesses": [
    {
      "description": [
        {
          "lang": "en",
          "value": "CWE-1025"
        }
      ],
      "source": "security-advisories@github.com",
      "type": "Secondary"
    }
  ]
}

GHSA-XVJ8-PH7X-65GF

Vulnerability from github – Published: 2026-04-18 00:41 – Updated: 2026-04-27 16:17

Summary

Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks

Details

CVE-2026-40880: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks

Summary

A logic error in Zebra's transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height H+1 but invalid for H+2 and then mining that transaction in a block at height H+2, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network.

Severity

High - This is a Consensus Vulnerability that could allow a malicious miner to induce network partitioning, service disruption, and potential double-spend attacks against affected nodes.

Affected Versions

All Zebra versions prior to version 4.3.1. (Some older versions are not affected but are no longer supported by the network)

Description

The vulnerability exists due to a performance optimization whose goal is to improve performance of transaction validation if the transaction was previously accepted into the mempool (and thus was verified as valid). That however did not take into account that a transaction can be valid for a specific height, but invalid at higher heights; for example, it can contain an expiry height, a lock time, and it is always bound to a network upgrade, all of which are height-dependant.

An attacker (specifically a malicious miner) could exploit this by (e.g. in the expiry height case):

Submitting a transaction with expiry height H+1 (where H is the height of the current tip)
Mining a block H+1, and a block H+2 that contains that same transaction, and submitting block H+2 before H+1
Zebra nodes would accept H+2 as valid (pending contextual verification) and wait for block H+1; when it arrives, Zebra would commit both blocks even if H+2 contains an expired transaction
Other nodes (like zcashd or zebrad nodes without that transaction in their mempool) reject the block, resulting in a chain fork where the poisoned Zebra node is isolated.

Impact

Consensus Failure

Attack Vector: Network (specifically via a malicious miner). Effect: Network partition/consensus split. Scope: Any Zebra node utilizing the transaction verification cache optimization for V5 transactions.

Fixed Versions

This issue is fixed in Zebra 4.3.1.

We removed the performance optimization altogether, since we deemed it too risky.

The fix ensures that verification is only skipped if the transaction's full integrity—including authorization data—is validated against the mempool entry.

Mitigation

Users should upgrade to Zebra 4.3.0 or later immediately.

There are no known workarounds for this issue. Immediate upgrade is the only way to ensure the node remains on the correct consensus path and is protected against malicious chain forks.

Credits

Thanks to @sangsoo-osec for a thorough advisory submission that noticed the lock time issue, and to @shieldedonly with an also thorough advisory (that was submitted while we were working on the first one) who noticed that the issue applied to other aspects of the transaction validation.

Severity

7.2 (High)


                  
                    CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H

Show details on source website

JSON

To clipboard

{
  "affected": [
    {
      "package": {
        "ecosystem": "crates.io",
        "name": "zebra-consensus"
      },
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "5.0.2"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "package": {
        "ecosystem": "crates.io",
        "name": "zebrad"
      },
      "ranges": [
        {
          "events": [
            {
              "introduced": "0"
            },
            {
              "fixed": "4.3.1"
            }
          ],
          "type": "ECOSYSTEM"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "aliases": [
    "CVE-2026-40880"
  ],
  "database_specific": {
    "cwe_ids": [
      "CWE-1025"
    ],
    "github_reviewed": true,
    "github_reviewed_at": "2026-04-18T00:41:54Z",
    "nvd_published_at": "2026-04-21T20:17:01Z",
    "severity": "HIGH"
  },
  "details": "# CVE-2026-40880: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks\n\n## Summary\n\nA logic error in Zebra\u0027s transaction verification cache could allow a malicious miner to induce a consensus split. By carefully submitting a transaction that is valid for height `H+1` but invalid for `H+2` and then mining that transaction in a block at height `H+2`, a miner could cause vulnerable Zebra nodes to accept an invalid block, leading to a consensus split from the rest of the Zcash network.\n\n## Severity\n\nHigh - This is a Consensus Vulnerability that could allow a malicious miner to induce network partitioning, service disruption, and potential double-spend attacks against affected nodes.\n\n## Affected Versions\n\nAll Zebra versions prior to version 4.3.1. (Some older versions are not affected but are no longer supported by the network)\n\n## Description\n\nThe vulnerability exists due to a performance optimization whose goal is to improve performance of transaction validation if the transaction was previously accepted into the mempool (and thus was verified as valid). That however did not take into account that a transaction can be valid for a specific height, but invalid at higher heights; for example, it can contain an expiry height, a lock time, and it is always bound to a network upgrade, all of which are height-dependant.\n\nAn attacker (specifically a malicious miner) could exploit this by (e.g. in the expiry height case):\n\n- Submitting a transaction with expiry height `H+1` (where `H` is the height of the current tip)\n- Mining a block `H+1`, and a block `H+2` that contains that same transaction, and submitting block `H+2` before `H+1`\n- Zebra nodes would accept `H+2` as valid (pending contextual verification) and wait for block `H+1`; when it arrives, Zebra would commit both blocks even if `H+2` contains an expired transaction\n- Other nodes (like `zcashd` or `zebrad` nodes without that transaction in their mempool) reject the block, resulting in a chain fork where the poisoned Zebra node is isolated.\n\n## Impact\n\n**Consensus Failure**\n\n**Attack Vector**: Network (specifically via a malicious miner).\n**Effect**: Network partition/consensus split.\n**Scope**: Any Zebra node utilizing the transaction verification cache optimization for V5 transactions.\n\n## Fixed Versions\n\nThis issue is fixed in **Zebra 4.3.1**.\n\nWe removed the performance optimization altogether, since we deemed it too risky.\n\nThe fix ensures that verification is only skipped if the transaction\u0027s full integrity\u2014including authorization data\u2014is validated against the mempool entry.\n\n## Mitigation\n\nUsers should upgrade to Zebra 4.3.0 or later immediately.\n\nThere are no known workarounds for this issue. Immediate upgrade is the only way to ensure the node remains on the correct consensus path and is protected against malicious chain forks.\n\n## Credits\n\nThanks to @sangsoo-osec for a thorough advisory submission that noticed the lock time issue, and to @shieldedonly with an also thorough advisory (that was submitted while we were working on the first one) who noticed that the issue applied to other aspects of the transaction validation.",
  "id": "GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf",
  "modified": "2026-04-27T16:17:07Z",
  "published": "2026-04-18T00:41:54Z",
  "references": [
    {
      "type": "WEB",
      "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra/security/advisories/GHSA-xvj8-ph7x-65gf"
    },
    {
      "type": "ADVISORY",
      "url": "https://nvd.nist.gov/vuln/detail/CVE-2026-40880"
    },
    {
      "type": "PACKAGE",
      "url": "https://github.com/ZcashFoundation/zebra"
    }
  ],
  "schema_version": "1.4.0",
  "severity": [
    {
      "score": "CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:P/PR:L/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:H/SA:H",
      "type": "CVSS_V4"
    }
  ],
  "summary": "Zebra: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks"
}

Sightings

Author	Source	Type	Date	Other

Nomenclature

Seen: The vulnerability was mentioned, discussed, or observed by the user.
Confirmed: The vulnerability has been validated from an analyst's perspective.
Published Proof of Concept: A public proof of concept is available for this vulnerability.
Exploited: The vulnerability was observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
Patched: The vulnerability was observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.
Not exploited: The vulnerability was not observed as exploited by the user who reported the sighting.
Not confirmed: The user expressed doubt about the validity of the vulnerability.
Not patched: The vulnerability was not observed as successfully patched by the user who reported the sighting.

The MITRE ATT&CK techniques below are AI-generated suggestions, inferred from the description of the vulnerability by the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-classification-roberta-base model, served locally by ML-Gateway. They have not been verified by an analyst and are provided for guidance only.
The approach is described in our paper Mapping CVEs to MITRE ATT&CK Techniques: A Curated Gold-Set Classifier and the Limits of LLM-Assisted Label Expansion.
Browse all ATT&CK techniques and the vulnerabilities related to each.

Related by attack behaviour

Vulnerabilities whose description is nearest to this one in the vector space of the CIRCL/vulnerability-attack-technique-biencoder model. This is a similarity search over the bi-encoder space (plain cosine), not a classification, and it has no measured accuracy.

Action not permitted

CVE-2026-40880 (GCVE-0-2026-40880)

FKIE_CVE-2026-40880

GHSA-XVJ8-PH7X-65GF

CVE-2026-40880: Cached Mempool Verification Bypasses Consensus Rules for Ahead-of-Tip Blocks

Summary

Severity

Affected Versions

Description

Impact

Fixed Versions

Mitigation

Credits

Tags

Sightings

Nomenclature

Related by attack behaviour