Merge pull request lightningdevkit#4593 from tnull/2026-05-printable-string-bidi

Strip Unicode `Cf` characters in `PrintableString`

Author: tnull

lightning-types/src/string.rs

@@ -31,14 +31,51 @@ impl<'a> fmt::Display for PrintableString<'a> {
 	fn fmt(&self, f: &mut fmt::Formatter) -> Result<(), fmt::Error> {
 		use core::fmt::Write;
 		for c in self.0.chars() {
-			let c = if c.is_control() { core::char::REPLACEMENT_CHARACTER } else { c };
+			let c = if c.is_control() || is_format_char(c) {
+				core::char::REPLACEMENT_CHARACTER
+			} else {
+				c
+			};
 			f.write_char(c)?;
 		}
 
 		Ok(())
 	}
 }
 
+// Codepoints in Unicode general category `Cf` (Format), per Unicode standard. These are not
+// matched by `char::is_control` (which only covers `Cc`), but include the bidirectional override /
+// isolate controls (e.g. U+202E RLO) and zero-width characters behind the "Trojan Source" attack
+// family (CVE-2021-42574), where an attacker-supplied string renders to a human reader as
+// something other than its byte content. Strip them alongside `Cc` characters when sanitising
+// untrusted input.
+fn is_format_char(c: char) -> bool {
+	matches!(
+		c as u32,
+		0x00AD
+			| 0x0600..=0x0605
+			| 0x061C
+			| 0x06DD
+			| 0x070F
+			| 0x0890..=0x0891
+			| 0x08E2
+			| 0x180E
+			| 0x200B..=0x200F
+			| 0x202A..=0x202E
+			| 0x2060..=0x2064
+			| 0x2066..=0x206F
+			| 0xFEFF
+			| 0xFFF9..=0xFFFB
+			| 0x110BD
+			| 0x110CD
+			| 0x13430..=0x1343F
+			| 0x1BCA0..=0x1BCA3
+			| 0x1D173..=0x1D17A
+			| 0xE0001
+			| 0xE0020..=0xE007F
+	)
+}
+
 #[cfg(test)]
 mod tests {
 	use super::PrintableString;
@@ -50,4 +87,24 @@ mod tests {
 			"I \u{1F496} LDK!\u{FFFD}\u{26A1}",
 		);
 	}
+
+	#[test]
+	fn sanitizes_unicode_bidi_override_characters() {
+		// U+202E RIGHT-TO-LEFT OVERRIDE and friends are Unicode general category
+		// `Cf` (Format), not `Cc` (Control). They enable "Trojan Source" /
+		// bidi-spoofing attacks where an attacker-supplied string (e.g. a node
+		// alias gossiped from a peer) renders to a human reader as something
+		// other than its byte content. `PrintableString` is the sanitiser used
+		// for exactly these untrusted strings, so it must replace them.
+		let rendered = format!("{}", PrintableString("safe\u{202E}cipsxe.exe"));
+		assert!(
+			!rendered.contains('\u{202E}'),
+			"PrintableString left a U+202E RLO override in its output: {:?}",
+			rendered
+		);
+
+		// U+13440 is in the Egyptian Hieroglyph Format Controls block, but its
+		// general category is `Mn`, not `Cf`, so the `Cf` range ends at U+1343F.
+		assert_eq!(format!("{}", PrintableString("x\u{1343F}y\u{13440}z")), "x\u{FFFD}y\u{13440}z");
+	}
 }