Cardano Suffers Temporary Chain Split From Code Bug, But Ada Hangs On

The Cardano blockchain network suffered a temporary chain split on Friday due to an old software bug triggered by an abnormal transaction.

The Cardano network suffered a temporary chain split on Friday, due to a “malformed” delegation transaction, transactions to delegate ADA (ADA) to a staking pool, which are valid on the protocol level but can cause code malfunctions that affect network functionality.

This “malformed” transaction exploited an old code bug in the underlying software library used by the Cardano blockchain, resulting in a network partition due to a disagreement in how nodes processed the transaction, according to an incident report from Cardano ecosystem organization Intersect.

Staking pool operators were directed to download the latest version of the node software to fix the issue and reconstitute the split chain into a single blockchain history.

However, the split has led to concerns about orphaned transactions and potential ADA double-spends that have caused economic damage to some users.

The exploit was caused by an ADA staking pool operator known as Homer J, who used AI-generated code to push the transaction and has accepted responsibility for causing the network partition.

The temporary split caused a debate within the Cardano community, with some arguing that Homer J’s actions helped expose critical bugs and others, like Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, calling it an attack on the Cardano network.

Related: 5-year Cardano hodler loses 90% of $6.9M ADA in bungled swap

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was contacted and is investigating the incident, according to Hoskinson. In a separate video statement, Hoskinson said:

But these things impact the lives, money, and commerce of millions of people. It's like trying to shut down an economy and conduct a cyberattack on a nation-state,” he continued.

Source: CoinTelegraph