HOMEVULNERABILITIESCVE-2020-26896
HIGH

CVE-2020-26896

CWE-354Published: October 21, 2020· Updated: Jun 17, 2026

8.2
CVSS v3.1

Official Description

Prior to 0.11.0-beta, LND (Lightning Network Daemon) had a vulnerability in its invoice database. While claiming on-chain a received HTLC output, it didn't verify that the corresponding outgoing off-chain HTLC was already settled before releasing the preimage. In the case of a hash-and-amount collision with an invoice, the preimage for an expected payment was instead released. A malicious peer could have deliberately intercepted an HTLC intended for the victim node, probed the preimage through a colluding relayed HTLC, and stolen the intercepted HTLC. The impact is a loss of funds in certain situations, and a weakening of the victim's receiver privacy.

NVD Source

Technical Analysis

CVE-2020-26896 can be exploited remotely over the network without requiring physical or adjacent access, significantly expanding the attack surface for threat actors.

The vulnerability requires no privileges and no user interaction, making it a prime target for automated exploitation campaigns and worm-like propagation.

A successful exploit results in full integrity compromise (data manipulation), with a CVSS base score of 8.2.

CVSS v3.1 Vector Breakdown

Exploitability
Attack VectorNetwork
Attack ComplexityLow
Privileges Req.None
User InteractionNone
ScopeUnchanged
Impact
ConfidentialityLow
IntegrityHigh
AvailabilityNone
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:L/PR:N/UI:N/S:U/C:L/I:H/A:N

Affected Vendors & Products

lightning_network_daemon_project1 product(s)
lightning network daemon
Source: NVD CPE · 2 total CPE entries

Exploit & PoC Resources

NO KNOWN EXPLOITNo public exploit confirmed at this time
Exploit-DB
Offensive Security exploit database
GitHub PoC Search
Community PoC repositories
Rapid7 / Metasploit
Metasploit module search
PacketStorm
Security advisories & exploits
NVD Detail
Official NIST entry
MITRE CVE
CVE Program entry
External links open in a new tab. Always verify in a controlled environment before use.

Official Patches & Advisories

PATCHhttps://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002857.html
PATCHhttps://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002857.html
ADVISORYhttps://gist.github.com/ariard/6bdeb995565d1cc292753e1ee4ae402d
ADVISORYhttps://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002855.html
ADVISORYhttps://gist.github.com/ariard/6bdeb995565d1cc292753e1ee4ae402d
ADVISORYhttps://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002855.html

All References (6)

→
https://gist.github.com/ariard/6bdeb995565d1cc292753e1ee4ae402dThird Party Advisory
→
https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002855.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002857.htmlMailing List · Patch · Third Party Advisory
→
https://gist.github.com/ariard/6bdeb995565d1cc292753e1ee4ae402dThird Party Advisory
→
https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002855.htmlMailing List · Third Party Advisory
→
https://lists.linuxfoundation.org/pipermail/lightning-dev/2020-October/002857.htmlMailing List · Patch · Third Party Advisory

Quick Facts

CVE IDCVE-2020-26896
CVSS Score8.2 / 10
SeverityHIGH
WeaknessCWE-354
CISA KEVNo
Affected1 vendor(s)
PublishedOct 21, 2020

Related CVEs (CWE-354)

CVE-2023-28386
9.8
CVE-2023-33668
9.8
CVE-2017-15994
9.8
CVE-2025-11543
9.8
CVE-2025-54887
9.1
CVE-2026-49230
9.1

Recommended Actions

  • →Apply vendor patches immediately
  • →Monitor CVE-2020-26896 in threat intel feeds
  • →Review IDS/IPS signatures for exploitation attempts
Data sourced from NVD (NIST), CISA KEV, and EPSS (FIRST). Analysis generated by CTIWatch. CVE data is provided under the NVD usage policy.
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