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Core DAO plans emergency hard fork after validators drew excess rewards
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- DeepHorus
Core DAO, a prominent Layer 1 blockchain, is orchestrating an emergency hard fork following an incident where a small number of validators claimed excess CORE token rewards beyond the protocol's intended issuance. The blockchain's team announced the corrective measure, emphasizing it was a targeted response to contain the specific reward-minting vulnerability. This development has prompted immediate scrutiny of the network's validator economics and security protocols.
The incident was first identified in a status update on Monday, with Core stating the anomalous reward accrual was limited to that specific function. Critically, the team assured users that all assets on the network remained safe and that the issue did not involve a compromise of funds. They have promised a detailed technical postmortem to explain the root cause.
In response, several major cryptocurrency exchanges took precautionary measures. Coinbase paused CORE sends and receives on its network, while South Korean exchanges Bithumb and Coinone suspended deposits and withdrawals due to suspected security concerns. Bitget and LBank also temporarily halted CORE transactions, citing wallet maintenance and project requirements, respectively.
Core DAO has clarified that the planned emergency hard fork will be a forward-looking upgrade. It will not involve rolling back the blockchain's history or reversing any previously confirmed transactions. This approach aims to rectify the faulty issuance mechanism without disrupting the immutable ledger of past activity.
The team has confirmed the incident is now contained, and malicious validators can no longer draw excess rewards. However, specific details remain undisclosed, including the total amount of CORE issued, the duration of the activity, and whether the excess tokens entered broader circulation. The vulnerability itself has not been publicly detailed.
This event places focus on the security of validator incentive structures within blockchain networks. A successful postmortem and transparent resolution could bolster confidence, while any lack of clarity might raise concerns. The community now awaits the promised technical report and the successful execution of the hard fork to fully stabilize the network.
