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Bitcoin Developer Sounds The Alarm: There’s A Backdoor In The Lightning Network

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Bitcoin’s Lightning Network was designed to make Bitcoin transactions faster and cheaper. But according to a recent discovery by a now former Lightning developer Antoine Riard, there’s a major security flaw in the network that puts users’ funds at risk. Taking to a thread on the Linux Foundation’s public mailing list, Riard detailed the new discovery of a security risk in the Lightning Network that could allow hackers to easily get control of the Layer 2 protocol.

Developer Departs From Bitcoin Lightning Network Over Security Concerns

The Bitcoin Lightning Network is a “layer 2” payment protocol that operates on top of the Bitcoin blockchain. It enables fast, low-cost transactions between participating nodes. Since its inception, the Bitcoin Layer 2 protocol has been well accepted, although various vulnerabilities have been reported.

Users can instantaneously send and receive Bitcoin thanks to the Lightning Network, which facilitates the creation of a network of payment channels between users without waiting for transactions to be confirmed on the blockchain. However, Riard claims that there’s a new malevolent danger out there called the replacement cycling attack, which puts the network in a perilous position.

Cycling attack works by specifically targeting payment channels to steal funds from mempools. These attacks are not easy but can be carried out by very sophisticated players. It essentially works by changing the transaction signature of a victim’s timeout transaction in a mempool by a new transaction without leaving a trace on the network. Although simple cycling attacks can be easily mitigated, Riard warns that a very sophisticated attack could leave payment channels exposed to hackers.

https://x.com/mononautical/status/1715736832950825224?s=20

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Author: Scott Matherson

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