Polymarket users experienced panic on Thursday after reports surfaced that some wallets had been depleted of funds. The incident was linked to a third-party software compromise, prompting the prediction market platform to suspend trading on its international site for about an hour.
Communications on Polymarket’s official Discord channel highlighted user anxiety around 1:30 p.m. when news of compromised funds emerged. The company assured affected users they would receive full compensation.
Polymarket functions as a betting platform where users can wager on diverse outcomes, from political events to entertainment releases. At about 2 p.m., the platform shifted to a cancel-only mode, allowing transaction cancellations but no new trades.
A third-party performance and debugging tool, DebugBear, was identified as the source of the issue, according to a source familiar with the details who requested anonymity. Polymarket has contacted authorities in the UK, where DebugBear operates.
DebugBear did not respond immediately to inquiries but acknowledged the security issue on social media. They advised users to eliminate its web-monitoring tools from their sites.
Patrick Stewart, renowned actor of Shakespearean theatre and star of ‘Star Trek,’ has passed away at 86. Known for his role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Stewart’s passing was attributed to Alzheimer’s and Lewy body dementia. He enjoyed a successful career, both in theatre and popular science-fiction, maintaining his theatrical roots with roles such as ‘Othello’ at Washington’s Shakespeare Theatre. Stewart’s rich emotional capacity, shaped by his training at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, left a lasting influence on many.
The Pentagon has updated its records concerning the Iran conflict with two additional noncombat fatalities, raising the total to 23. The deaths, involving two airmen, occurred due to illness and undetermined causes, with further investigation ongoing. These figures form part of the Defense Department’s database of casualties, encompassing both combat and noncombat incidents related to the Iran war.
The U.S. economy faces a new record as federal debt surpasses GDP size for the first time since World War II, reaching 100.3% in 2026. This raises concerns about fiscal sustainability, as consumer spending, a major growth driver, shows signs of weakening with inflation and high interest rates impacting household finances. Economists predict moderate spending in the coming months, adding to the debt’s potential impact on long-term interest rates and economic pressures.
In regulatory news, a new mandate requires pharmacy benefit managers to disclose earnings from drugmakers. This Trump administration policy aims for price transparency to lower drug costs. The regulation demands transparency on pharmaceutical negotiations, allowing better deal-making for those on self-insured group healthcare plans. Despite receiving industry criticism, the rule begins in July.
A novel study highlights that seabirds, much like humans, experience jet lag that influences their navigation. Published in Science, researchers from the University of Oxford studied Manx shearwaters, observing disruptions to their internal clocks during long migrations and subsequent directional errors. This research aims to shed light on both avian and human circadian systems, which share similar functioning principles.