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Dictionary Consensus

Slashing

Also known as slashed

Slashing is a penalty in some proof-of-stake networks that destroys part of a validator’s staked tokens when it breaks key protocol rules, such as signing two conflicting blocks. It is designed to make attacks and careless operation costly. Delegators who staked through a slashed validator may share the loss, depending on the network. Slashing is separate from smaller penalties for simply being offline, which some networks also apply.

Written by our editors · Updated October 14, 2026

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