BNB Chain Activates Pasteur Hard Fork Upgrade for Enhanced Security

BNB Chain has activated the Pasteur hard fork upgrade on its mainnet, introducing three key changes to enhance bridge security, validator authorization, and block capacity. The upgrade was successfully implemented without any major disruptions.

The Pasteur hard fork combines BEP-682, BEP-695, and BEP-675 under the broader BEP-673 upgrade plan. These changes had been tested on BSC's Chapel testnet since July 21 before being deployed to mainnet.

BEP-682 addresses a bridge security flaw by rejecting duplicate validator entries when verifying light blocks submitted through cross-chain infrastructure, ensuring that bridge approvals reflect actual independent support.

The BEP-695 upgrade fixes gaps around validator key rotation, penalties, and governance. It now prevents validators from escaping pending penalties by rotating keys, and restricts restricted addresses from using offchain signatures to participate in governance.

BEP-675 introduces an optional route for specialist builders to submit blocks they have already executed, allowing validators to sign without re-running full execution. This change aims to improve throughput while maintaining the existing block time and gas limit.