ChainCatcher news, according to TheBlock, Wintermute recently issued a warning that the Ethereum Pectra upgrade may expose users to automated attacks. The EIP-7702 feature (account abstraction improvement) in the Ethereum Pectra upgrade is being maliciously exploited, with over 80% of authorizations being used for automated attacks. Blockchain security company Scam Sniffer recently monitored a user who lost nearly $150,000 due to a phishing attack, where the attacker deployed a copy-paste contract named "CrimeEnjoyor" that can automatically drain wallets with leaked private keys. EIP-7702, proposed by Ethereum founder Vitalik Buterin, aims to enhance user experience by temporarily granting wallets smart contract functionality, including batch processing multiple transactions, sponsoring gas fees, using biometric/social verification, and setting single transaction limits.According to Wintermute's Dune dashboard, the vast majority of EIP-7702 authorizations flow to malicious contracts with similar functions. Security expert Taylor Monahan pointed out that EIP-7702 makes draining addresses "cheaper and easier." Wintermute commented, "It's both absurd and cruel that the same copied bytecode occupies most of the EIP-7702 authorizations."BlockBeats previously reported that SlowMist founder Yu Xian stated that the biggest users of the new Ethereum mechanism EIP-7702 are theft gangs (rather than phishing organizations). EIP-7702 allows for the automatic transfer of funds from wallets with leaked private keys or mnemonic phrases through authorizations, with over 97% of EIP-7702 delegations pointing to theft contracts.

ChainCatcher news, the Optimism core development team OP Labs has successfully activated the Isthmus hard fork, introducing key features of the Ethereum Pectra upgrade into the OP Stack and Superchain ecosystem, becoming the first L2 ecosystem to support Pectra.This upgrade covers multiple OP Stack chains including Base, Ink, OP Mainnet, Soneium, and Unichain.

ChainCatcher news, security company Slow Mist stated on platform X that the Ethereum Pectra upgrade (EIP-7702) is now live------this is a significant leap, but the new features also bring new risks. Here are some points that users, wallet providers, developers, and exchanges should pay attention to:For users: Private key protection should always be a top priority; be aware that the same contract address on different chains may not always have the same contract code; understand the details of the delegation target before proceeding with operations.For wallet providers: Check if the delegation chain matches the current network; remind users of the risks associated with delegation signatures that have a chainID of 0, as these signatures may be replayed on different chains; display the target contract when users sign the delegation to reduce the risk of phishing attacks.For developers: Ensure permission checks are performed during wallet initialization (e.g., verify the signature address through Ecrecover); follow the namespace formula proposed in ERC-7201 to mitigate storage conflicts; do not assume Tx.Origin is always an externally owned account (EOA), using Msg.Sender == Tx.Origin as a defense against reentrancy attacks will no longer be effective; ensure that the target contract of user delegation implements the necessary callback functions to ensure compatibility with mainstream tokens.For centralized exchanges (CEXs): Conduct tracking checks on deposits to reduce the risk of false deposits from smart contracts.

ChainCatcher message, former Immunefi smart contract developer and security engineer Vladimir posted on the X platform, stating that with the Ethereum Pectra upgrade, users only need to sign a message to fully withdraw, so extra caution must be taken when signing transactions.

ChainCatcher news, Coinbase officially announced that it has begun actively preparing for the upgrade and will implement necessary updates after the official launch of Pectra. Coinbase also stated that it will continue to closely monitor the preparations for the system update to ensure customers have a smooth launch experience. Previously, due to configuration issues during the activation of the Holesky and Sepolia testnets, the Ethereum Pectra upgrade was delayed, and it is now scheduled to go live on the mainnet on May 7.

ChainCatcher news, Coinbase stated in an official blog post that the next major upgrade for Ethereum is approaching. Due to configuration issues during the activation of the Holesky and Sepolia testnets, the Pectra upgrade has been delayed and is currently scheduled to launch on the mainnet on May 7. Coinbase has begun actively preparing for the upgrade and will implement necessary updates after the official launch of Pectra.In addition, Coinbase also mentioned that it will continue to closely monitor the preparations for the system update and actively work to ensure that customers have a smooth launch experience.

ChainCatcher news, the upcoming Pectra upgrade for Ethereum was activated on the Sepolia testnet around 14:30 Beijing time today.It is reported that the Sepolia version is the last major release before the mainnet upgrade launch, which is expected to start next month. This deployment marks the second phase of the Pectra testnet activation, following Pectra's launch on the Holesky testnet on February 24.The Pectra upgrade is named a combination of "Prague" (execution layer changes) and "Electra" (consensus layer updates), introducing several changes aimed at improving Ethereum's scalability. If performance is good, developers expect to determine the mainnet activation date during the All Core Developers (ACD) call on March 6, 2025. The potential launch time for the mainnet is set for early April.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, the Ethereum Pectra upgrade was activated at 5:55 on the Holesky testnet, but according to blockchain data, it was initially not finalized. Finalization refers to the state where once a transaction is confirmed and added to a block, it becomes immutable and irreversible. It is currently unclear why the testnet failed to finalize. Ethereum developers are investigating.This is not the first time an upgrade has not been completed on a testnet; previously, in January 2024, when developers were testing the Dencun upgrade, the hard fork was initially not completed on the Goerli testnet.

ChainCatcher news, QCP Capital's latest analysis points out that the term structure of the Ethereum options market has shown a significant distortion around the March expiration date, which may be related to the anticipated Pectra upgrade set to launch in early April.Looking back at history, the September 2022 merge upgrade followed the "buy the rumor, sell the news" pattern, with ETH surging before the upgrade and then retreating; while the initial performance of the Shanghai upgrade in April 2023 was pessimistic due to supply concerns, ETH rose 30% after selling pressure did not materialize. The current market may be positioning for the Pectra upgrade, with options volatility leaning bullish after March 28, indicating potential upward expectations.However, the weakness in the altcoin market poses a restraining factor, with the LIBRA collapse, SOL and ETH retreating to pre-election levels, and Bitcoin's market cap nearing historical highs. The continued recovery of altcoins relies on substantial progress in real applications and network development, rather than just speculative funding.

ChainCatcher news, QCP Capital's latest analysis points out that the term structure of the options market has shown a significant distortion around the March expiration date, particularly in Ethereum options. This may reflect the market's positioning for the Ethereum Pectra upgrade, which is currently in the testing phase and expected to go live in early April.Looking back at past upgrades, the September 2022 merge upgrade followed the typical "buy the rumor, sell the news" pattern—ETH fell back after rising over 100% from the June low post-upgrade. In contrast, the Shanghai upgrade in April 2023, which enabled staking withdrawals, faced pessimism due to market concerns about oversupply. However, once the market realized that the selling pressure did not materialize as expected, ETH rose by 30% in the following months.As expectations for the upgrade heat up, traders may be positioning for another volatility event, with options volatility skewed towards call options after March 28—this could lay the groundwork for the next thematic play in the crypto market following the Trump tariff turmoil.One dampening factor is the general weakness in the altcoin market—LIBRA's collapse, SOL and ETH retreating to pre-election levels, and Bitcoin's market cap share nearing historical highs. Beyond market catalysts, altcoins may need to achieve substantial progress in real-world applications and network development to sustain a recovery, rather than relying solely on speculative capital flows.

ChainCatcher news, according to Coindesk, Ethereum developers have officially confirmed the testing dates for the Pectra upgrade. The upgrade will begin testing on the Holesky testnet on February 26, followed by a second round of testing on the Sepolia testnet on March 5. If the testing goes smoothly, the developers will hold a meeting on March 6 to determine the official launch date, which is expected to go live on the mainnet in early April.The Pectra upgrade (composed of the Prague and Electra upgrades) includes 8 significant improvements, primarily focusing on wallets and validators. Among them, EIP-7702 will enhance the user experience of cryptocurrency wallets; EIP-7251 will allow validators to increase their staking limit from 32 ETH to 2,048 ETH.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Gautham Santhosh, co-founder of the DeFi derivatives protocol Polynomial, stated that the Ethereum Pectra upgrade can only temporarily alleviate capacity issues. "55% of all blob space has already been consumed by L2. At the current growth rate, we are only a few months away from everything collapsing. It's like having 50 developing cities with only 3 lanes on the highway." The Ethereum Pectra upgrade is scheduled for March 2025 and is expected to increase the blob limit per block to 9.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Galaxy cryptocurrency researcher Christine Kim believes that due to the current complexity of the Pectra fork and the increased demand for upgrades, the possibility of splitting into two independent upgrades (Prague upgrade and Electra upgrade) is "very high." Christine Kim previously summarized the 196th Ethereum Core Developers Meeting (ACDE), stating that Ethereum developers are seriously considering executing the Pectra upgrade in two phases.In addition, Christine Kim also added that if developers decide to split the Pectra upgrade into two hard forks, the scope could change significantly. It is reported that Ethereum developers will make a decision on this during the next Ethereum All Core Developers teleconference on September 19.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, as Ethereum is set to undergo the Pectra upgrade in early 2025, Liquid Collective and Obol have released a latest research report revealing several risks associated with this upgrade. The report emphasizes the importance of client, operator, and cloud diversity, while also expressing concerns about the limited adoption of Distributed Validator Technology (DVT). Matt Leisinger, Chief Product Officer of Alluvial, stated that addressing the risks associated with Ethereum staking and protocol-level penalties has become a pressing priority.The report specifically points out that potential bugs in mainstream clients could trigger severe slashing penalties and network instability. In terms of staking, operator diversity is crucial for maintaining network health and preventing single points of failure. Leisinger emphasized that stakers and service providers must rigorously assess relevance, diversity, and risk mitigation measures to address potential risks. Additionally, the report discusses the issue of cloud diversity, calling for widely distributed validators and cloud providers to enhance system resilience. DVT technology is seen as an important means to reduce associated risks and enhance validator resilience. For long-term resilience and institutional adoption, staking configurations should prioritize the diversity of node operators and validators.

ChainCatcher news, according to a post by ETH Daily, the Ethereum Pectra upgrade is scheduled for the first quarter of 2025. This upgrade is expected to include EOF, Peer DAS, EIP-7702, and other proposals.