Aztec Connect’s abandoned smart contract exploited for $2.1M

Written by Martin Youngstaff writerReviewed by Jesse Coghlanstaff editorWritten by Martin Youngstaff writerReviewed by Jesse Coghlanstaff editorAztec Connect’s abandoned smart contract exploited for $2.1MLatest NewsPublishedJun 15, 2026<!–>

The Aztec Connect platform was deprecated in March 2023, but the immutable smart contract still held over $2 million in crypto assets.

Aztec Connect, a deprecated decentralized finance platform, was drained of around $2.1 million in crypto on Sunday after an attacker exploited its verification function.

Aztec Labs posted to X on Sunday that it was “investigating a potential exploit affecting Aztec Connect,” adding that around $2.1 million was transferred from the platform’s smart contract, which did not affect users or assets on the current Aztec network.

The exploit is the latest in the $44 million worth of crypto that has been stolen so far this month from at least 12 other exploits, according to DeFiLlama. 

A private key compromise on the Humanity Protocol has been the largest so far in June, with $30 million lost on June 8, followed by the Syscoin Bridge, which saw $8 million swiped in a fake proof exploit the previous day.

Crypto security firm BlockSec said that an attacker exploited a mismatch in how the platform verified transactions and settled them on Ethereum.

It said that verified transactions on Aztec Connect’s contract were “not effectively bound to the transaction set enforced by the ZK proof,” allowing its verification path and settlement logic on Ethereum “to interpret the transaction list differently.”

The attacker could then place transactions where the contract credited value without validating it on Ethereum, which created unbacked balances that could then be withdrawn. The attacker did this seven times across seven different assets.

The attacker made off with 909 Ether (ETH), 270,000 Dai (DAI), 167 of wrapped staked ETH and a handful of other cryptocurrencies.

Some of the assets stolen in the exploit. Source: CertiK

Aztec Network is a privacy-focused layer-2 zero-knowledge (ZK) rollup on Ethereum. Aztec Connect was the previous version of the platform that launched in 2022 as a DeFi bridge.

Related: Crypto exploit losses in May fall 90% over month to $68M: CertiK

Aztec Connect was deprecated in March 2023, with deposits halted and the team shifting resources to the next-generation Aztec Network.

“Aztec Labs holds no admin keys or control over the system; it cannot be paused or upgraded by us,” the team said. 

Crypto developer “Param” said Aztec Connect’s smart contracts became “fully immutable” and could no longer be upgraded or paused.

“The incident is another reminder that abandoned DeFi contracts can still become targets years later,” they said. 

Magazine: OpenAI files for IPO, SEC scraps 611 rule and Hungary overhauls crypto: Hodlers Digest

Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.

[–>
• Smart Contracts
• DeFi
• Hacks
• Scams & Cybercrime

More on the subject

International sting shuts down $390M crypto money-laundering ring<!–>[–>Jun 12, 2026Martin Young<!–>[–>AI models led to a ‘vulnerability apocalypse’ in crypto security: Immunefi CEO<!–>[–>Jun 11, 2026Zoltan Vardai<!–>[–>Teen crypto scammer stole $13M to splurge on private jets, Lambo<!–>[–>Jun 11, 2026Felix NgInternational sting shuts down $390M crypto money-laundering ring<!–>[–>Jun 12, 2026Martin Young<!–>[–>AI models led to a ‘vulnerability apocalypse’ in crypto security: Immunefi CEO<!–>[–>Jun 11, 2026Zoltan Vardai<!–>[–>Teen crypto scammer stole $13M to splurge on private jets, Lambo<!–>[–>Jun 11, 2026Felix Ng