ZKsync discloses $5 million attack from compromised airdrop admin account, triggering 20% price drop

The ZKsync security team disclosed in a social media post on Tuesday that approximately $5 million worth of ZK tokens had been drained from a compromised admin account. The attacker reportedly “took control” of the remaining unclaimed tokens from the ZKsync airdrop.

“All user funds are safe and have never been at risk,” the team posted to X, noting they are taking necessary security measures. “The ZKsync protocol and ZK token contract remained secure, and no further ZK is at risk.”

The breach appears to be connected to a compromised key tied to the admin account managing the airdrop contract. “The investigation is ongoing, and a detailed update will be shared later today,” the team added. 

The incident led to a 20% drop in ZK’s price at around 13:50 UTC, likely triggered by the hacker selling the stolen tokens. At press time, the token, launched in June 2024, is down approximately 15%, according to The Block's data page. 

ZKsync, created by Matter Labs, is a Layer 2 solution on Ethereum. The project’s token airdrop, which debuted last year with a total supply of 21 billion, received some backlash due to perceptions of unfair token distribution and the team’s failure to filter out Sybil farmers.