Blockchain security company Hexens revealed that it discovered a critical vulnerability in the Aptos blockchain's Move Virtual Machine (Move VM) back in February this year. The issue was fixed within hours of being reported, with no financial losses incurred. Hexens stated that the vulnerability stemmed from a caching handling flaw, which could lead to a type confusion exploit. In theory, attackers could use this to gain high-level privileges in stablecoin minting, cross-chain bridges, and DeFi protocols. The research team used a server costing around $3,000 to build a simulation environment close to the mainnet and tested the exploit path approximately 20 times, achieving success in 17 to 18 attempts. They estimated that the vulnerability could have impacted around $250 million worth of Aptos native TVL. If it had further affected cross-chain bridges, stablecoins, and centralized exchanges, the theoretical systemic risk exposure could have reached as high as $7 billion. Aptos, however, stated that the exploitability of this vulnerability in a real-world environment was extremely low. They also confirmed that the issue was promptly resolved through their bug bounty program, with no impact on any users or funds. (CoinDesk) https://www.(wublock123.com)/news/hexens-discloses-aptos-fixed-vulnerability-affecting-cross-chain-bridges-stablecoins-64037