How did the DAO get hacked?

In the world of cryptocurrency, the Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) was once a groundbreaking concept, promising a new era of decentralized governance and funding. However, in 2016, it suffered a significant hack that shook the crypto community. The question remains: how did the DAO get hacked? The hack stemmed from a vulnerability in the DAO's smart contract code. This vulnerability allowed hackers to exploit a recursive calling mechanism, resulting in the creation of a large number of child DAOs. By dividing the funds into these child DAOs, the hackers were able to withdraw a significant portion of the DAO's Ether funds into their own accounts. This exploit, known as the "split function attack," left the DAO with a substantial financial loss and raised questions about the security of smart contracts and decentralized governance. So, in summary, the DAO was hacked due to a vulnerability in its smart contract code that allowed hackers to exploit a recursive calling mechanism and withdraw funds into their own accounts. This event served as a wakeup call for the crypto community, emphasizing the importance of rigorous smart contract auditing and security measures.