Heist on Starknet! zkLend Hacker Faces a Dilemma
The zkLend team is making an unusual bet: rather than chasing the hacker, they’ve put a 10% “bounty” on honesty. But will ethical hacking principles prevail, or will the attacker walk away with everything?
Blockchain security experts at Cyvers report that the hacker immediately swapped the stolen funds into Ethereum (ETH) and tried to funnel them through Railgun, a decentralized privacy protocol designed for anonymous transactions on EVM networks. But things didn’t go as planned—the protocol’s built-in restrictions kicked in, sending the funds right back to the attacker’s wallet.
Upon receiving the transfer, we agree to release from any and all liability regarding the attack. We are working with security firms and law enforcement at this stage,
zkLend’s team stated in a direct message to the hacker.
The ball is now in the hacker’s court—either return the funds or face relentless pursuit. zkLend has made it clear that they are prepared to use specialized tracking technologies to expose the perpetrator and take legal action. Given that cybercriminals stole over $73 million in January, this breach might be a sign of another turbulent month ahead.
As the industry scrambles for better protection, cybersecurity firms are pushing for new solutions. Michael Perl, VP of GTM Strategy at Cyvers, argues that off-chain transaction verification could be the key to stopping up to 99% of attacks before they strike.
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