BNB Beacon Chain hard fork adds 'panic' feature that can 'halt' blockchain
The Binance-operated BNB Beacon Chain mainnet is set to add a new feature in its upcoming hard fork, which will give the blockchain the ability to “halt” the production of new blocks if certain conditions are met.
In a July 12 statement from BNB Chain, the “ZhangHeng” upgrade is expected to take place at block height 328,088,888, which it expects will occur on July 19.
Important information about our latest upgrade ⤵️https://t.co/4sJkTJbGeZ
The hard fork will introduce Binance Evolution Proposal BEP-255, which seeks to implement "on-chain asset reconciliation" — which Binance believes could mitigate damage from potential cross-chain bridge exploits such as the Binance Smart Chain exploit on Oct. 7, 2022.
"Although some enhancements have been made to improve cross-chain security, such as BEP171, the security of assets on the BNB Beacon Chain itself should also be guaranteed, especially after the bridge exploitation," according to the Github post concerning BEP-255.
Binance explained that under the BEP, user balance changes will be tracked in each block and will be reconciled to identify any issues.
Binance said the action will impact "downstream services such as bridges, deposits, and withdrawals on exchanges" but the "drastic action" is necessary to protect the chain and its users.
Bringing the blockchain back online will require a hard fork and will require addressing the reconciliation error.
"For example, if exploitation exists, related accounts should be blacklisted or corrected. Once the blockchain is resumed, downstream services can be brought back up as well," it explained.
Other changes include a bug fix to prevent “Rogue Key Attacks” — a security issue where a perpetrator produces a valid aggregate signature for a
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