BonkDAO US$20 Million Stolen via Malicious Proposal: What Happened?

Security activity in the Solana ecosystem is once again in the spotlight after reports emerged regarding the BonkDAO hack, which is alleged to have drained treasury funds worth approximately US$20 million. 

This incident differs from most smart contract exploitation cases because the BonkDAO malicious proposal is said to be the starting point for the asset transfer. As of now, the investigation is still ongoing and the project team continues to try to track the flow of the missing funds.

Key Takeaways

• BonkDAO claims approximately US$20 million in BONK tokens were removed from the treasury through a governance proposal suspected to be malicious.
• The project team has reported the incident to law enforcement and initiated an investigation.
• The alleged attack triggered negative sentiment toward BONK, while the technical details of the exploit have not yet been published.

Chronology of the Alleged BonkDAO Treasury Theft

According to a report by CryptoBreaking, BonkDAO revealed that approximately US$20 million in treasury assets were transferred from the DAO wallet through a malicious governance proposal that was allegedly deliberately designed to seize control of the project's funds.

The announcement was made through BonkDAO's official account on the X platform. The team explained that they immediately conducted an investigation after discovering unusual activity in the treasury.

As of the writing of this article, BonkDAO has not identified the perpetrator nor explained in detail how the proposal was able to pass and be executed. The team only stated that the investigation is still ongoing with law enforcement.  

Illustration: Generated by AI

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What Is a Malicious Proposal and Why Is It Different from a Regular Hack?

This case has drawn attention because the alleged attack did not originate from smart contract exploitation or private key theft.

Instead, BonkDAO stated that the funds were transferred through the DAO governance mechanism. In other words, the suspected vulnerability lies in the proposal submission or execution process of the governance system.

As of now, there is no official technical explanation regarding the scenario used by the perpetrator. Therefore, it cannot yet be confirmed whether the incident involved vote manipulation, proposal validation weaknesses, or other methods within the governance system.

This situation has led many observers to await the official investigation results before drawing conclusions about the actual cause. 

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Impact on BONK Price and the Solana Ecosystem

Shortly after the news spread, BONK's price came under pressure. According to reports cited by CryptoBreaking, the memecoin token fell by around 7% in 24 hours.

The price drop occurred while the memecoin sector was already facing high volatility. As a result, the negative sentiment from the alleged treasury theft amplified selling pressure in the market.

However, as of now, there is no indication that the Solana network experienced any disruption or that BONK's main smart contract was successfully hacked. The available information still points to the alleged abuse of the DAO governance mechanism.

This incident also reminds the Web3 community that security does not only depend on smart contract code, but also on the governance design that regulates decision-making in decentralized organizations.

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BonkDAO's Steps to Recover Funds

BonkDAO stated that their current main focus is identifying the perpetrator and attempting to recover the lost assets.

Some of the steps that have been taken include:

• reporting the case to law enforcement;
• initiating an internal investigation;
• tracking the movement of funds from the alleged theft;
• evaluating the DAO governance mechanism.

As of now, there is no official information on whether any portion of the funds has been frozen or returned. BonkDAO has also not disclosed the identity of the party allegedly responsible for the incident.

The results of the investigation are expected to become an important reference for other DAO projects in strengthening proposal and voting mechanisms to prevent similar risks from recurring.

Read Also: How to Buy Solana on Bittime

Conclusion

BonkDAO claims that treasury assets worth approximately US$20 million were transferred due to a malicious proposal that allegedly exploited the DAO governance mechanism. Unlike smart contract hacking cases, this incident still leaves many questions because the technical details have not been published.

While the investigation is ongoing, the BonkDAO team is focusing on tracking the funds and cooperating with law enforcement. This case also serves as a reminder that DAO governance requires security systems that are just as strong as the blockchain's technical infrastructure.

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FAQ

What happened to BonkDAO?

BonkDAO claims that approximately US$20 million in BONK tokens were removed from the treasury through a malicious governance proposal that is currently under investigation.

Was BONK hacked?

There is no evidence that the BONK smart contract was hacked. The current suspicion points to the abuse of the DAO governance mechanism.

What is the value of the allegedly missing funds?

According to BonkDAO, the value of assets removed from the treasury reached approximately US$20 million in BONK tokens.

Has the perpetrator been identified?

Not yet. The BonkDAO team stated that the perpetrator's identity is still under investigation with law enforcement.

Have BonkDAO's funds been successfully recovered?

As of now, there has been no official announcement that the allegedly stolen funds have been fully recovered.