The Ankr hack has finally been confirmed. The Web3 infrastructure platform, Ankr, was targeted with a major exploit earlier today. It has been alleged that the malicious hacker was able to make millions of dollars off the Web platform. The Ankr hack was possible by simply generating 10 trillion ANKR Reward Bearing Staked BNB (aBNBc).
Our aBNB token has been exploited, and we are currently working with exchanges to immediately halt trading.
— Ankr (@ankr) December 2, 2022
What Is Ankr?
Ankr is basically a provider of the Web3 infrastructure for the BNB Chain or Binance Chain ecosystem. It is a reputed platform for cloud computing that is known to distribute surplus computing power. The native token of the platform is ANKR. The native token can be easily mined by offering processing power to the network. In addition to this, it also offers numerous staking as well as yield-earning opportunities for the BEP-20 Tokens.
Ankr Hack: The Menace
As reported by a blockchain security company, PeckShield, the smart contract of aBNBc token possessed an “unlimited mint bug”. The Ankr exploiter has successfully transferred the 900 BNB tokens into Tornado Cash for around $253,000. As the news flows, the Ankr hack exploiter currently holds 3,000 ETH which is estimated to be roughly $3.8 million, and 500,000 USDC.
The exploiter has acquired 20 trillion aBNBc and stands to be the 13th largest holder of the staking reward token.
Our analysis shows the $aBNBc token contract has an unlimited mint bug. Specifically, while mint() is protected with onlyMinter modifier, there is another function (w/ 0x3b3a5522 func. signature) that completely bypasses the caller verification to have arbitrary mint !!! https://t.co/h51e7xpcVf pic.twitter.com/caRgasNNHq
— PeckShield Inc. (@peckshield) December 2, 2022
During the Ankr hack, the native token of the platform (ANKR) nosedived by 6.6%. It dropped to a generous $0.0211. However, it managed to bounce back to $0.0213. All in all, the token has already nosedived by 90% from its all-time high of $0.213 in April 2021.
How Is The Crypto Community Reacting?
The crypto community is showing a mixed reaction to the Ankr hack and the price drop. Some suggest that quick action must be a priority to fix this mess. A lot of others are expressing their insecurity regarding their investments. Considering the collective feeling, it can be stated that people are hoping that the platform would steadily recover from the exploit.
Following this, the Binance Coin (BNB) fell drastically to $288, which is a 3.1% decline from its last position. That said, the majority of the crypto assets or the digital assets are currently experiencing a downward trend, this is consistent with a huge collapse in the crypto market.
Binance, the prominent cryptocurrency exchange, mentioned that its staff is proactively working with the necessary parties for looking into the matter in greater depth. They also confirmed that the funds of the users are not in danger. In addition to this, the wallet address of the exploiter has been blacklisted, as seen in the BNB Chain’s tweet.
We are aware of the attack on @ankr's aBNBc that happened earlier today, leading to a substantial amount of new aBNBc being minted. The exploiter has been blacklisted.
— BNB Chain (@BNBCHAIN) December 2, 2022
Our community is on top of it, coordinating a response. We will provide more updates as they become available.
However, the Ankr hack situation arises in the midst of a number of chaos in the cryptocurrency market. It is causing even more people to lose their trust in the crypto industry.
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