MetaMask exits Ethereum validators after attacker diverts staking rewards

An Ethereum security researcher estimates 0.36 ETH in rewards was diverted, while precautionary exits cover validators holding roughly 523,000 ETH.

MetaMask began exiting affected Ethereum validators after a security incident diverted an estimated 0.36 ETH in block-production payments, though the company said it found no immediate threat to users’ wallets.

A researcher estimated that 17,000 validators holding roughly 523,000 ETH were being withdrawn, but MetaMask had not confirmed those figures or explained how its systems were compromised.

Lido said affected validators could miss rewards during an exit and re-entry process lasting up to 45 days, while stETH holders do not need to take action.

MetaMask is pulling Ethereum staking systems out of service after a security incident, with Lido warning of lost rewards and a security researcher reporting that payments from producing blocks were diverted to another wallet.

The cryptocurrency wallet provider, which also operates staking services, disclosed Wednesday that the incident affected part of its infrastructure, adding it exited affected validators — or the computers that help check Ethereum transactions — as a precaution.

“At this time, we have identified no immediate threat to MetaMask wallets,” the company said.

Ethereum security researcher Kaden said on X that 18 of 19 MetaMask-operated validators that had earned payments for producing blocks sent those payments to an unexpected address. He estimated 0.36 ETH had been diverted.

Kaden’s analysis put the precautionary exits at roughly 17,000 validators holding 523,000 ETH. MetaMask has not confirmed those figures or published an explanation of how its systems were compromised as of Asian afternoon hours Thursday.

Staking lets holders earn ETH by committing their coins to help secure Ethereum. Operators such as MetaMask run the computers that do the work, while customers retain separate control over where their staked coins can be withdrawn.

A validator also has an address for receiving transaction-fee payments when it produces a block. Changing that destination can divert income without changing where the original stake goes when withdrawn. Ethereum sets those destinations separately.

Someone controlling those credentials could make a validator approve conflicting records, triggering a punishment called slashing, in which Ethereum destroys some of its stake and removes it from service. Neither MetaMask nor Lido has reported that this happened.

Lost income while validators leave

The precautionary shutdown carries a cost even if the staked coins remain secure.

Lido, a service that pools users’ ETH for staking, said early Wednesday that MetaMask-operated validators had begun leaving its system. The last are expected to stop staking by Oct. 7, although their ETH will not necessarily have been withdrawn by then.

Withdrawing the coins and putting them back into staking could take up to approximately 45 days because of the queue to enter Ethereum’s staking system. The affected validators would miss rewards while out of service and could incur penalties if taken offline before completing their exits.

“No action is required from stETH holders,” Lido said. Its stETH token represents users’ pooled stake and accumulated rewards.

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