A cryptanalytic break in Altcha Proof-of-Work obfuscation mode version 0.8.0...

Vulnerability Description

A cryptanalytic break in Altcha Proof-of-Work obfuscation mode version 0.8.0 and later allows for remote visitors to recover the Proof-of-Work nonce in constant time via mathematical deduction. NOTE: this is disputed by the Supplier because the product's objective is "to discourage automated scraping / bots, not guarantee resistance to determined attackers." The documentation states “the goal is not to provide a secure cryptographic algorithm but to use a proof-of-work mechanism that allows any capable device to decrypt the hidden data.”

References

• https://github.com/altcha-org/altcha/blob/154f874cbcdd4e639783463130d13988a2bd1bdc/src/helpers.ts#L170-L194
• https://altcha.org/docs/v2/obfuscation/
• https://github.com/eternal-flame-AD/altcha-deobfs