THORChain has clarified that its network pause function is strictly an emergency security mechanism designed to protect the protocol, not a selective freeze targeting specific funds or transactions. The team emphasized that the system remains permissionless and neutral by design, with no built-in censorship capabilities. The clarification follows the May 2026 exploit that resulted in $10.7 million stolen from liquidity pools. THORChain confirmed the attacker's address was never blacklisted and continued to conduct swaps on the platform, demonstrating the protocol's inability to censor individual users. The project reiterated that it operates as a neutral public tool without mechanisms to restrict access based on identity or transaction history.