Ronin Network Faces Second Major Hack: $11 Million Stolen

The Ronin Network, known for its play-to-earn games, has been hacked again. This time, over $11.33 million was siphoned off, marking the second significant hack in two years.

Hack Discovery

The breach was first reported by blockchain security firm PeckShield. They revealed that an MEV bot withdrew Ether (ETH) and USD Coin (USDC) worth $11.33 million from the Ronin Bridge.

Ronin Network's Response

Following the alert, the Ronin Network paused its operations. They confirmed the bridge was paused 40 minutes after the first on-chain action was detected to prevent further exploitation. The team started investigating the breach.

MEV Bot Involvement

The exploit appears to have been facilitated by an MEV bot, which accidentally exploited a loophole in the Ronin Bridge protocol. MEV bots analyze and execute arbitrage opportunities across decentralized finance platforms. In this case, the bot withdrew a substantial amount of funds, with a portion sent to a wallet known as 'beaverbuild.' Sky Mavis co-founder Aleksander Leonard Larsen assured users that all assets are currently safe, and the team is investigating the breach.

This is not the first time Ronin has been compromised. In March 2022, the network lost over $615 million. The attacker exploited a backdoor through the gas-free RPC node, bypassing the network's security measures.