Buffer overflow in go-ethereum - CVE-2021-39137
Published: August 24, 2021 / Updated: April 27, 2026
Vulnerability identifier: #VU127993
CSH Severity: High
CVSSv4.0: CVSS:4.0/AV:N/AC:L/AT:N/PR:N/UI:N/VC:N/VI:H/VA:H/SC:N/SI:N/SA:N/E:U/U:Amber
CVE-ID: CVE-2021-39137
CWE-ID: CWE-119
Exploitation vector: Remote access
Exploit availability:
No public exploit available
Vulnerable software:
go-ethereum
go-ethereum
Software vendor:
Ethereum
Ethereum
Description
The vulnerability allows a remote attacker to cause a consensus error.
The vulnerability exists due to memory corruption in the Geth EVM when processing a maliciously crafted transaction. A remote attacker can send a maliciously crafted transaction to cause a consensus error.
Successful exploitation can cause vulnerable nodes to compute a different stateRoot and reject the canonical chain, potentially splitting the chain into two forks.
Remediation
Install security update from vendor's website.