Chainlink Launches CCIP 2.0 With Custom Security Checks for Cross Chain Transfers

Chainlink has rolled out a major upgrade to its cross-chain protocol, letting companies add their own security layers months after a $292 million bridge hack exposed the risks of relying on a single verifier.

Chainlink CCIP 2.0: What Changed for Crypto Bridges

CCIP 2.0 went live on Monday. It lets companies add their own security checks on top of Chainlink’s default network of 16 independent node operators, which still verifies every transfer. Firms can run their own verifiers or hire outside providers such as Infosys and Nethermind. Chainlink’s Johann Eid said legacy bridges have lost billions to insecure infrastructure, while in-house builds are slow and expensive.

Why Bridge Verifiers Matter

Blockchains can’t talk to each other directly, so bridges use verifiers to confirm a deposit really happened before funds are released on the other chain. If a verifier is fooled, an attacker can withdraw money that was never deposited.

Kelp DAO Hack and the Single Verifier Problem

In April, attackers allegedly linked to North Korea’s Lazarus Group drained about $292 million in rsETH from Kelp DAO’s bridge, which ran on LayerZero, after tricking the one verifier it relied on. LayerZero blamed Kelp for using a single verifier, while Kelp said LayerZero staff had reviewed and never objected to its setup. CoinGecko data showed nearly half of active LayerZero apps used the same arrangement. Kelp said it would move rsETH to Chainlink.

Risk Management Network Role Changes

Chainlink’s Risk Management Network, a separate set of nodes that double checked transactions, no longer plays that role. Chainlink says optional verifiers can now provide that independent check. That suggests a user who adds nothing now relies on one verifier network instead of two. Existing users were moved to the new version automatically. No institution has been named as using the new verifiers yet, though Aave and Maple have begun adopting other features of the upgrade.