--- title: "Hackers Loot Blockchain Bridge for Millions In “Frenzied Free For All”" description: "Hackers were able to exploit a basic flaw in crypto bridge Nomad to rob the platform of roughly $190 million in user investments." date: "2022-08-03" modified: "2022-08-03" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/hackers-loot-blockchain-bridge-millions" categories: - "Blockchain" - "Future Society" tags: - "blockchain" - "crypto" - "hackers" - "the digest" --- # Hackers Loot Blockchain Bridge for Millions In “Frenzied Free For All” ![Hackers were able to exploit a basic flaw in crypto bridge Nomad to rob the platform of roughly $190 million in user investments.]() *\Image: Getty Images/Futurism\* ## That's Bad On Monday, hackers exploited a basic vulnerability in the code of Nomad — a crypto "bridge" that allows customers to transfer cryptocurrencies between different blockchains — getting away with roughly $190 million in user investments, [*CNBC* reports](). This hack is [just the latest]() in a [string of attacks on crypto bridges](), platforms that, according to *CNBC*, have collectively lost more than $1 billion to hackers in 2022 alone. Given that [Nomad markets itself]() as a "secure" platform, the company definitely has a lot of explaining to do. ## Copy Paste Though the company has [remained tight-lipped about the incident](), some analysts have weighed in on what they think went down. "Nomad just got drained for over $150 million in one of the most chaotic hacks that Web3 has ever seen," Sam Sun, a researcher at crypto investment firm Paradigm, wrote in a viral [Twitter thread](). Sun alleged that the hackers needed very little technical knowledge to execute the heist, which [he described in one tweet]() as a "frenzied free-for-all." According to Sun, the hackers simply exploited a coding mistake in a routine software update — a shocking error that allowed bad actors to forge transaction data with a simple copy-paste command. "All you had to do was find a transaction that worked, find/replace the other person's address with yours, and then re-broadcast it," [Sun explained](). According to *CNBC*, Nomad has yet to inform its users if they'll be reimbursed — but [given the industry's track record](), users should be ready to call their lost investments a write-off. **READ MORE:** [*Hackers drain nearly $200 million from crypto startup in ‘free-for-all’ attack*]() \[*CNBC*\] **More on crypto hacks:** [*Wildly Overconfident Crypto.Com Bros Admit That Hackers Stole $30 Million of Its Money*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()