Aethir, a decentralized GPU cloud network, has confirmed a malicious attack targeting its cross-chain bridge contracts. The company stated that the exploit was contained, with user losses under $90,000 and its main Ethereum supply intact. A full compensation plan is expected next week as the firm works with exchanges to trace the attackers.
Aethir detected and contained a malicious attack on its ATH bridge contracts linking Ethereum to other chains. All compromised contracts were promptly disconnected, successfully halting the exploit.
The main ATH supply on Ethereum remains fully intact, and the ETH-ARB bridge was not affected. User losses were limited to under $90,000, with a full compensation plan to be announced next week.
Aethir stated it is working with authorities and partner exchanges to trace the attackers and freeze associated funds. It credited platforms like Binance, Upbit, Bithumb, and HTX for quickly blacklisting wallets to limit damage.
The firm acknowledged blockchain security team ZeroShadow for its analysis. “A full attacker wallet list will be posted in Discord as we monitor the funds,” the team said in an update.
The announcement followed a report by PeckShield, which had initially estimated losses around $400,000. The security company stated the attacker bridged funds from BNB Chain to Tron.
PeckShield recently reported that total losses from crypto security breaches climbed to roughly $52 million from 20 incidents in March. This nearly doubled the figures from February, highlighting a rising trend.
A pattern referred to as “shadow contagion” is emerging, where a single exploit impacts multiple interconnected DeFi platforms. Attacks create bad debt and weaken liquidity pools beyond the initially targeted protocol.
