🚨Blockchain developer Antoine Riard calls for updating Bitcoin source code to deal with "replacement cycling" attacks on the Lightning Network.

🔍Riard's research shows that an attacker could completely control Lightning's channel capabilities and interfere with transactions on the Bitcoin core network, resulting in delaying or preventing transaction confirmations. This is especially worrying because the attack can be carried out regardless of network congestion.

⚠️This vulnerability has serious consequences for the broader Bitcoin ecosystem, with at least 50,000 nodes running the BTC protocol as of October 2023. This vulnerability could undermine trust in layer two solutions like the Lightning Network, important for Bitcoin scalability and adoption.

💡Riard proposes a series of mitigations at both the Lightning network and the Bitcoin base layer, including local mempool monitoring, a strong replay strategy, and changes to mempool and transaction rules. However, Riard believes that current mitigation measures are insufficient against advanced enemies.

🔧Riard calls for fundamental changes in the Bitcoin source code to prevent such vulnerabilities. “We need to change the Bitcoin code base to effectively secure the Lightning Network,” he said. "This is a call to action for all of us in the blockchain community to rethink and re-engineer how Bitcoin and the Lightning Network interact."