Attacker exploits Hyperbridge to mint 1 billion bridged DOT, stealing $237K; major exchanges suspend DOT deposits and withdrawals.
Security & Exploits ·
An attacker exploited Hyperbridge to mint 1 billion bridged DOT tokens and netted approximately $237K from the incident. The breach triggered immediate responses from major South Korean exchanges: Upbit and Bithumb both suspended deposits and withdrawals of Polkadot's DOT token citing signs of a security incident.
The exploit targeted the bridge infrastructure used to port DOT across blockchain networks, enabling the creation of unbacked tokens at scale. The relatively modest financial extraction despite the enormous token supply generated suggests either a partial exploit, rapid detection, or constraints on how quickly the attacker could liquidate the minted assets.
It remains unclear whether the vulnerability in Hyperbridge has been patched, whether other bridged assets face similar risk, or the full scope of exposure across other platforms and users. The suspension scope—limited to DOT and not extending to other assets—suggests exchanges are treating this as isolated to Hyperbridge's cross-chain mechanism rather than a systemic exchange infrastructure failure.