The cryptocurrency world was shaken to its core yesterday as news broke of the largest hack in recorded history. Poly Network, a platform designed to connect different blockchains, fell victim to attackers who exploited a vulnerability that allowed them to change the “keeper role” of a blockchain contract, enabling them to make unauthorized transactions such as withdrawals. According to a Medium post by Poly Network, the vulnerability was a result of a keeper’s private key being leaked.
The aftermath of the hack was staggering, with over $610 million being stolen, as confirmed by cybersecurity firm SlowMist in a tweet thread. The impact of the attack led to the transfer of large assets from the O3 Swap cross-chain pool to three addresses controlled by the attackers.
The security team quickly sprang into action and managed to track down crucial information about the attackers, including their mailbox, IP address, and device fingerprints through on-chain and off-chain tracking. SlowMist provided detailed insights into how the attack unfolded, highlighting the specific vulnerabilities that were exploited by the hackers.
The attackers manipulated the EthCrossChainManager contract, allowing them to change the keeper role and execute unauthorized transactions. This manipulation enabled them to withdraw substantial amounts of funds from the contract, leaving the affected contracts with a value of $0. The transactions published by SlowMist and Poly Network revealed the staggering sums withdrawn by the exploiters from the Bscscan and Etherscan contracts.
Poly Network took to Twitter to confirm the attack and urged the hackers to return the stolen assets. The alliance described the hack as the biggest in the history of decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms and warned the hackers that law enforcement agencies would consider it a major economic crime.
In response to the hack, Poly Network called on miners of the affected blockchains, including BinanceChain, Ethereum, and Polygon, to blacklist tokens originating from the published addresses. However, security experts like Brian Higgins from Comparitech expressed doubts about the recovery of the stolen funds, emphasizing the risks associated with unregulated financial platforms and the inherent vulnerabilities of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
As the aftermath of the hack continues to unfold, the cryptocurrency community is left grappling with the implications of the unprecedented security breach. The incident serves as a stark reminder of the challenges and risks associated with decentralized financial platforms and underscores the need for robust security measures to protect users and their assets in the ever-evolving landscape of digital finance.