OpenTensor Foundation Works To Restore Bittensor Blockchain After Attack

According to Odaily, OpenTensor Foundation has announced its commitment to restoring the normal operation of the Bittensor blockchain as quickly as possible. The primary task at hand is to ensure the system's security and integrity, preventing any additional wallets from being damaged and no more funds being put at risk. The foundation is continuously working to establish a mechanism to ensure the safety of funds at risk.

In a recent announcement, OpenTensor Foundation revealed the root cause of the attack on the Bittensor blockchain. The attack was traced back to version 6.12.2 of the PyPi Package Manager, which had a malicious package uploaded that jeopardized user safety. This malicious package, disguised as a legitimate Bittensor package, contained code for stealing unencrypted cold key details. When users downloaded this package and decrypted their cold keys, the decrypted bytecode was sent to a remote server controlled by the attacker. The users primarily affected were those who downloaded the Bittensor PyPi package between May 22 and 29 and carried out transactions, pledges, and delegations.

As a mitigation measure, the OTF team has removed the malicious 6.12.2 version package from the PyPi package manager library. The team has been meticulously reviewing the Subtensor and Bittensor code on Github to ensure there are no other attack vectors, and so far, no other vulnerabilities have been discovered. The OTF team will continue to thoroughly review and assess the codebase and conduct a comprehensive assessment of all other possible attack vectors. They are also collaborating with several exchanges, providing them with detailed information about the attack to track the attacker and recover the stolen funds as much as possible.

OTF pointed out that this attack did not affect the blockchain or Subtensor code, and the underlying Bittensor protocol remains intact and secure. Once the code review is completed, OpenTensor will gradually restore the normal operation of the Bittensor chain, allowing transactions to flow smoothly again.