Chainflip blocks Bybit hacker with protocol upgrade.
Chainflip has rolled out an emergency upgrade to enhance broker-level screening, aiming to prevent hackers from laundering funds stolen in the massive $1.4 billion Bybit exploit through its protocol.
The swift action comes after the Feb. 21 attack on Bybit, the largest crypto exchange breach to date.
Since the incident, blockchain investigators, analytics firms, exchanges, and protocols have been collaborating to trace and recover the stolen assets.
In a Feb. 24 announcement, Chainflip introduced the "1.7.10" upgrade, designed to block illicit transactions and safeguard liquidity providers from exposure to tainted funds.
The protocol emphasized that allowing stolen funds to flow through the system puts liquidity providers and general users at risk, prompting the team to act fast:
"That is why we acted quickly to cut off access to the main interface after flows from the Bybit hack were spotted on Saturday morning," Chainflip stated.
Chainlink has also collaborated with its providers to prevent Bybit’s stolen funds from being funneled through its decentralized crosschain services. Chainflip’s latest upgrade is expected to go live by Feb. 27, following internal testing and deployment.
The "1.7.10" update enhances broker-level screening tools, empowering operators to block incoming Bitcoin (BTC) transactions based on risk profiling.
Any rejected deposits will automatically be refunded to the user's specified address — a feature now extended to Ethereum and all ERC-20 tokens.
With this upgrade, any crypto wallets linked to the Bybit hack or other major security breaches will be barred from using Chainflip services. The team also hinted at future security enhancements to further protect users as threats evolve.
Reflecting the crypto industry's self-regulation efforts, Chainflip highlighted the ecosystem’s collective responsibility to combat crime:
"We do not need regulators to tell us what to do in this situation. There are sufficient commercial reasons for the ecosystem to take these steps, not just ethical ones."
In a bold closing statement directed at the hackers, Chainflip made its stance crystal clear:
"Take your stolen money elsewhere — we don’t want it."
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