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The Sandbox contains cross-chain bridge exploit on Base and BNB networks
The Sandbox has contained a security breach involving its cross-chain bridge on the Base and BNB Smart Chain networks. Attackers exploited the LayerZero 'approveAndCall' function to hijack delegate permissions, enabling the unauthorized minting of unbacked SAND tokens.
While security firm Blockaid reported that the face-value of minted tokens reached approximately $49 billion across more than 400 transactions, the actual economic impact was significantly lower. On-chain data indicates that roughly 14.75 million Ethereum-backed SAND, valued at approximately $675,000, was extracted from bridge reserves. PeckShield reported that approximately 14.9 billion SAND were created across two specific wallet addresses.
The Sandbox has disabled bridging to and from the affected networks to isolate the fabricated tokens. The project stated that SAND held on Ethereum and Polygon remains secure and that no user wallets were compromised. To mitigate losses, The Sandbox is taking a snapshot of balances from before the attack to compensate eligible liquidity providers.
In response to the incident, South Korean cryptocurrency exchanges Upbit and Bithumb suspended SAND deposits and withdrawals to protect users from potential volatility.
Entities
Base · Bithumb · LayerZero · Lookonchain · The Sandbox · Upbit
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.
- [● 2 SOURCES] The Sandbox intends to compensate eligible liquidity providers using a snapshot of balances taken before the attack. crypto.news
- [● 4 SOURCES] South Korean exchanges Upbit and Bithumb suspended SAND deposits and withdrawals following the incident. crypto.news · www.cryptopolitan.com · coinpedia.org
- [● 3 SOURCES] The direct impact of the exploit is estimated to be less than 0.01% of the total 3 billion SAND token supply. crypto.news · newsable.asianetnews.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] Approximately $49 billion in face-value SAND was minted across more than 400 transactions. www.tronweekly.com · coindoo.com · coinpedia.org · newsable.asianetnews.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] Approximately 14.75 million Ethereum-backed SAND, valued near $675,000, left the bridge reserves during the attack. coindoo.com · coinpedia.org · bitcoinethereumnews.com · crypto.news
- [● 3 SOURCES] The Sandbox has contained a cross-chain bridge vulnerability affecting the Base and BNB Smart Chain networks. crypto.news · newsable.asianetnews.com
- [● 4 SOURCES] Attackers hijacked LayerZero delegate permissions via the approveAndCall function to mint unbacked SAND. www.tronweekly.com · coindoo.com · coinpedia.org · bitcoinethereumnews.com
- [● 5 SOURCES] PeckShield reported that 14.9 billion SAND were created across two wallet addresses involved in the exploit. www.tronweekly.com · newsable.asianetnews.com · bitcoinethereumnews.com · www.nadanews.com · cryptonomist.ch