fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam - #4042
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When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires.
teknium1
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Follow-up to cherry-picked PR #4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression
teknium1
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* fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires. * test: add coverage for pairing response rate limiting Follow-up to cherry-picked PR #4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression --------- Co-authored-by: 0xbyt4 <35742124+0xbyt4@users.noreply.github.com>
angelburgosrosado
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Apr 27, 2026
…rch#4081) * fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires. * test: add coverage for pairing response rate limiting Follow-up to cherry-picked PR NousResearch#4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression --------- Co-authored-by: 0xbyt4 <35742124+0xbyt4@users.noreply.github.com>
02356abc
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May 14, 2026
…rch#4081) * fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires. * test: add coverage for pairing response rate limiting Follow-up to cherry-picked PR NousResearch#4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression --------- Co-authored-by: 0xbyt4 <35742124+0xbyt4@users.noreply.github.com>
gweeteve
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Jun 2, 2026
…rch#4081) * fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires. * test: add coverage for pairing response rate limiting Follow-up to cherry-picked PR NousResearch#4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression --------- Co-authored-by: 0xbyt4 <35742124+0xbyt4@users.noreply.github.com>
waefrebeorn
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Jul 2, 2026
…rch#4081) * fix: rate-limit pairing rejection messages to prevent spam When generate_code() returns None (rate limited or max pending), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would get 30 rejection replies — reported as potential hack on WhatsApp. Now check _is_rate_limited() before any pairing response, and record rate limit after sending a rejection. Subsequent messages from the same user are silently ignored until the rate limit window expires. * test: add coverage for pairing response rate limiting Follow-up to cherry-picked PR NousResearch#4042 — adds tests verifying: - Rate-limited users get silently ignored (no response sent) - Rejection messages record rate limit for subsequent suppression --------- Co-authored-by: 0xbyt4 <35742124+0xbyt4@users.noreply.github.com>
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Summary
When
generate_code()returns None (user rate-limited or max pending codes reached), the "Too many pairing requests" message was sent on every subsequent DM with no cooldown. A user sending 30 messages would receive 30 identical rejection replies.Reported by a user on Discord who thought their Hermes was hacked — it sent "Too many pairing requests" to 5 unauthorized WhatsApp contacts 30 times each after updating to 0.6.0.
Root cause
In
_handle_message(), thegenerate_code()call has rate limiting (only generates one code per user per cooldown window). But when it returns None, the rejection message has no rate limiting — it fires on every single incoming message.Fix
_is_rate_limited()before any pairing response — if rate limited, silently ignoreBefore: 10 messages from unauthorized user → 1 code + 9 "Too many" replies (10 messages sent)
After: 10 messages from unauthorized user → 1 code + 9 silently ignored (1 message sent)
Test plan