What Is the Difference between “Soft Slashing” and “Hard Slashing”?

"Hard slashing" typically refers to the most severe penalty, involving the forfeiture of a large portion of the staked funds and often removal from the validator set for grave offenses like double-signing. "Soft slashing" refers to minor penalties, often small fines or temporary removal from validation duties, for less severe offenses like minor downtime or poor performance.