Attack on Taiko: hacker compromised the L2 network state verification mechanism, losses exceed $1.7 million
On June 22, the team behind the Layer 2 (L2) solution Taiko confirmed a serious security incident: the blockchain state verification mechanism was compromised. This jeopardized all bridges deployed on the network.
Developers stated that under the current circumstances, the security of Taiko's bridge protocols can no longer be relied upon. Users are strongly advised to immediately withdraw funds from all bridges operating within the ecosystem.
Coordination with Exchanges and Damage Assessment
The project is actively coordinating with the security council and key partners to contain the threat. The team has also asked centralized exchanges to temporarily suspend deposits of the TAIKO token until an official notification that the situation has stabilized.
According to data from the analytics platform Lookonchain, the damage from the attack is estimated at approximately $1.7 million. The hacker stole native TAIKO tokens and various wrapped ETH (wETH). Part of the stolen funds — 1.99 million TAIKO (about $189,000) — has already been deposited on the MEXC exchange. At the time of publication, the attacker still held 870.8 ETH ($1.52 million).
Market Reaction
News of the incident immediately impacted the price of the native token. Over the past day, the TAIKO coin dropped by 11% — from $0.09 to $0.07. This confirms the market's high sensitivity to security issues in infrastructure solutions.
This case once again highlights the vulnerabilities of cross-chain bridges, a key element of the DeFi ecosystem. Just a few days before the attack on Taiko, on June 19, the blockchain project Axelar disclosed a hack of its bridge with Secret Network, where the attacker withdrew approximately $4.67 million by exploiting an "infinite mint" vulnerability.
My professional commentary: The attack on Taiko is not just an isolated incident but a warning sign for the entire L2 solution industry. Bridges remain the weakest link in the security chain, and until developers implement more reliable state verification mechanisms (e.g., through ZK-proofs at the protocol level), such hacks will continue. Investors should be extremely cautious when using bridge protocols, especially in new or recently launched networks.