$11.58M Verus-Ethereum Bridge Hack Renews Cross-chain Security Concerns

A major hack of the Verus-Ethereum bridge has again highlighted the rising security risks in cross-chain infrastructure for decentralized finance.

Blockchain security firms said attackers stole nearly $11.58 million from the bridge by exploiting weaknesses in its verification system. The stolen assets included Ether, tokenized Bitcoin, and USDC stablecoins.

Cybersecurity company Blockaid said the attackers did not steal private keys or break cryptography. Instead, they took advantage of flaws in how the bridge checked asset balances between chains. Another firm, PeckShield, confirmed the details of the exploit.

Investigators said the vulnerability was similar to weaknesses seen in earlier bridge hacks like Wormhole and Nomad. The attacker created fake transaction data that looked valid under the protocol’s rules, letting them withdraw millions of dollars illegally.

Security researchers said the flaw could be fixed with minor code changes, leading to new criticism about the quality of safety checks in some DeFi protocols.

This incident adds to a tough year for DeFi security. Industry data shows that several DeFi protocols have been hacked in recent months, causing hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.

Cybersecurity experts warn that hackers may start using artificial intelligence tools to find vulnerabilities faster, which could make future attacks more dangerous and complex.

The Verus exploit is another reminder that cross-chain bridges are still some of the most vulnerable parts of the crypto ecosystem, even as decentralized finance keeps growing.

JUST IN: Verus-Ethereum Bridge suffers an ~$11.58M exploit, as per cybersecurity firm Blockaid. pic.twitter.com/ctQ56P3mUJ

— CoinGecko (@coingecko) May 18, 2026

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