Hacker withdrew $625 million from Ronin sidechain

An attacker gained control of five of the nine validators to use the exploit

30.03.2022 - 07:20

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What’s new? Ronin Network, a sidechain used by the popular game Axie Infinity was attacked by a hacker. With the exploit, the criminal withdrew more than $625 million in cryptocurrency (173 600 ETH and 25,5 million USDC), the project’s developers said on Twitter. Following the hack, the Ronin team disabled the cross-chain bridge and the Katana non-custodial exchange.

Source: Twitter.com

Details of the hack. According to a statement from the developers, the hacker exploited the vulnerability back on March 23. The Ronin network includes nine validator nodes that control transactions. The signatures of five of them are required to confirm a deposit or withdrawal. The hackers captured four, as well as a third-party validator operated by Axie DAO.

Most of the stolen funds are still in the hacker’s wallet. Ronin Network developers stated that they are “working with law enforcement officials, forensic cryptographers, and our investors to make sure that all funds are recovered or reimbursed.”

This hack became the largest in the history of DeFi, surpassing the Poly Network hack in terms of funds stolen, in which the attackers withdrew $611 million in cryptocurrency.

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