Axelar Clarifies Recent Security Event: Third-Party CW20 Fork's Removed Safety Checks Triggered Vulnerability

According to ChainCatcher, Axelar Network clarified that the network and Inter-Blockchain Communication Protocol (IBC) were not compromised in a recent Secret Network security incident. The vulnerability stemmed from a third-party token contract based on a modified CW20-ICS20 implementation, not from Axelar or IBC themselves.

Developers of the vulnerable contract removed two critical security checks from the original code, introducing an "unlimited minting" flaw. The modification altered the contract's trust model without undergoing new security audits, Axelar explained. The protocol's firewall mechanism prevented the issue from spreading to other chains.