Solana Bot Attack Uncovered: $29.7 Million Heist on Pump.fun

Attack Patterns

The investigation found that the bots used a 'sandwich' strategy to exploit price slippage, with 96% of detected attacks on Pump.fun's launch curve and PumpSwap exchange. This strategy involved placing a bot's purchase and sale around another trader's swap, with the first purchase raising the pool price and the intervening buyer receiving fewer tokens. The bot then sold into the higher price, with the cost reaching the trader through execution, even when the swap completed successfully.

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Slippage Tolerance

The investigation found that trades with 20%–50% slippage were sandwiched 14 times as often as those allowing under 3%. This suggests that the bots targeted trades with higher slippage tolerance, as these allowed for greater exposure and potentially higher profits. However, the observed attack rates did not rise uniformly with every wider setting, with trades below 0.5% tolerance being hit more often than those at 1%–3%.

Estimated Gross Take

The estimated gross take of $29.7 million values SOL at the minute of each attack and does not measure net profit. The report also identifies inconsistent Pump.fun sale-fee recording that affects its gross estimate by about 3%. Bitquery used repeated trading patterns to identify bots, excluded round trips beginning in a token's first 10 slots, and reports gaps in exchange and block coverage. Chain records cannot prove a bot saw an order beforehand, and some qualifying wallets may be fast traders.

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Conclusion

The investigation highlights the need for greater protection against front-running and price slippage in cryptocurrency trading. The findings suggest that bots are increasingly sophisticated and can exploit vulnerabilities in exchange and blockchain systems. As the cryptocurrency market continues to evolve, it is essential for exchanges and regulators to implement measures to prevent these types of attacks and protect users' assets.