Kaal Dhairya, the primary developer behind the Shiba Inu ecosystem, labeled the recent security breach on the Shibarium network as a significant event, even though the team managed to limit the immediate repercussions.
Dhairya clarified that bridge operations on Shibarium are currently restricted, and new security measures have been implemented for various processes, including deposits, withdrawals, and rewards. The Bone ShibaSwap tokens, which dictate validator voting power, have been successfully retrieved and secured. Despite these efforts, Dhairya acknowledged that the incident revealed flaws in decentralization, a goal that had been set aside in favor of other developmental priorities. The developer chose not to provide a specific timeframe for the resumption of bridge services, emphasizing that safety remains the utmost concern.
The cyberattack resulted in the theft of approximately $4 million across 17 different cryptocurrencies, including significant amounts of Ethereum and SHIB, as well as smaller quantities of USDC, Tether, and Shiba Inu Treat. The assailant gained a two-thirds majority in validator voting power, allowing them to inject malicious software into Shibarium. Shytoshi Kusama, the lead ambassador for Shiba Inu, confirmed active collaboration with developers to address the breach, dismissing any rumors of his absence as unfounded. Concurrently, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin advocated for a shift towards low-risk decentralized finance, such as payments and lending, aligning with the network's core objectives and suggesting that the focus should be on applications that bring tangible benefits to the world rather than politically charged memecoins.