AI-assisted scan finds Bitcoin Core flaws that could crash Windows and macOS nodes

Bitcoin Core has disclosed three vulnerabilities identified through an automated large-language-model scan. The project published the advisories on October 28, 2026, after releasing fixes in versions 29.5, 30.4, 31.2 and 32.1.

The most serious disclosed issue involves TCP urgent data. A malicious connected peer could trigger unbounded memory growth and crash affected Bitcoin Core nodes running Windows, macOS or BSD.

Linux nodes are not affected by that particular vulnerability. Bitcoin Core said the distinction stems from Linux using a different socket-monitoring backend.

The disclosures add practical context to Bitcoin Core’s stated approach for bugs it considers easily discoverable, including vulnerabilities that automated tools may identify.

TCP urgent-data flaw affects non-Linux nodes

According to Bitcoin Core’s advisory, the TCP urgent-data issue can be exploited by a malicious peer that is already connected to a node. The result is unbounded memory growth, which can eventually crash the affected process.

The issue applies to Windows, macOS and BSD systems. Bitcoin Core said Linux is not exposed to this flaw because its socket-monitoring backend differs from the one used by the affected platforms.

Node operators using the affected operating systems should ensure they are running a release containing the published fixes. The advisory identifies versions 29.5, 30.4, 31.2 and 32.1 as fixed releases.

Two additional vulnerabilities disclosed

The project also published advisories for slow unbounded memory growth involving paused pre-BIP31 peers and for an undo-file overflow under extreme conditions.

Bitcoin Core said the undo-file issue remains exploitable on 32-bit systems and on nodes that store blocks on FAT32 filesystems, even after the 64-bit fix. That limitation is relevant to operators whose hardware or storage configuration falls into either category.

The disclosures concern software reliability and node availability. The supplied advisories do not establish a change to Bitcoin’s consensus rules or provide evidence of a network-wide incident.

Disclosure policy addresses AI-findable bugs

Bitcoin Core classifies the three issues as easily discoverable. Under its policy, the project says it moves quickly to publish fixes and advisories for vulnerabilities in that category.

The policy is particularly relevant as automated scanning can reduce the effort needed to uncover implementation flaws. The current disclosures show how that process can surface issues in network-facing code before advisories are published.

For further context, Bitcoin Core’s disclosure approach for AI-findable vulnerabilities is covered in the related report below.

Continue reading: Bitcoin Core’s disclosure approach for AI-findable vulnerabilities on BTCNews.

Continue reading: Bitcoin network mining and difficulty developments on BTCNews.

Sources

• Bitcoin Core: Unbounded memory growth through TCP urgent data on non-Linux systems
• Bitcoin Core: Slow unbounded memory growth on paused pre-BIP31 peers
• Bitcoin Core: Undo file overflow under extreme conditions
• Bitcoin Core: Security Advisories
• CoinDesk: AI found a way to crash bitcoin nodes on Windows and Macs. It's now public

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