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MIT Students Stole $25 Million In Seconds By Exploiting ETH Blockchain Bug, DOJ Says (slashdot.org)

submitted 6 months ago by 0nekoneko7@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

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[–] shrugal@lemm.ee 115 points 6 months ago (27 children)

Here is a more detailed explanation of the exploit.

The Pepaire-Bueno brothers exploited a bug in MEV-boost's code that allowed them to preview the content of blocks before they were officially delivered to validators, according to the indictment.

The brothers created 16 Ethereum validators and targeted three specific traders who operated MEV bots, the indictment said. They used bait transactions to figure out how those bots traded, lured the bots to one of their validators which was validating a new block and basically tricked these bots into proposing certain transactions. [...]

So hardly an attack on any core system of cryptocurrencies.

[–] survirtual@lemmy.world 35 points 6 months ago (18 children)

So they discovered faulty code and made some money?

Can anyone explain to me how this is illegal?

The code is a contract. If someone writes bad code and loses money, then write better code - just like if someone writes a bad legal contract and loses money.

The justice system is awful.

[–] yetAnotherUser@feddit.de 30 points 6 months ago (2 children)

You withdraw cash at an ATM but the software has faulty code which causes your balance to remain the same after withdrawing any amount.

You notice this and then empty the entire ATM this way, making $200,000. I'm sure once you explain to the jury that the ATM just gave you a bad contract, they will acquit you.

[–] Cypher@lemmy.world 4 points 6 months ago

A bartender in Australia did essentially just that but to the tune of $1.6 million AUD.

https://www.businessinsider.com/australian-bartender-withdraws-over-million-dollars-atm-glitch-vice-podcast-2020-4?op=1

[–] General_Effort@lemmy.world 3 points 6 months ago (2 children)

No one ever said ATM-code is law. Ethereum code is supposed to be. Code is law is one of their slogans.

Everything that a blockchain does could be handled by a single office computer. The whole reason for the huge, expensive over-head is to put crypto beyond the law. Stuff like this exposes the whole, huge waste of human effort.

[–] possiblylinux127@lemmy.zip 2 points 6 months ago

It isn't above law.

[–] qwerty@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 6 months ago

Code is the law of the blockchain, his transaction wasn't reverted, he got caught irl. It's like saying constitution isn't law because laws of physics don't prevent murder.

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