A Maximum Extractable Value (MEV) bot has returned the majority of the nearly 4,000 Ether (ETH) stolen from the Ronin Network bridge on August 6.
Data from the Ethereum analytics platform Etherscan shows that around $10 million worth of ETH was sent back to Ronin, suggesting the bot unintentionally front-ran the attack.
The network's team announced on X that the "white hat" attacker would receive a $500,000 reward for identifying the exploit.
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MEV bots function by replicating transactions and offering higher gas fees to ensure that they execute it first if profitable, which can lead to unintentional exploits of protocols. For example, if an attacker fails to pay enough gas fees, an MEV bot might replicate the attack and drain funds. Typically, the bot's owner returns the funds to the victim, as seen in the Ronin incident.
The Ronin team said the bridge will remain closed until an audit confirms the vulnerability is fully fixed.
The network's team's quick action and the ethical response of the MEV bot owner highlight the collaborative efforts needed to maintain security within decentralized finance ecosystems.
Ronin has previously suffered a massive hack in March 2022, which resulted in the loss of over $600 million, making it one of the largest crypto hacks of that year.
