the assembly process does have something to do with this, more so than thinking the ribs are under-designed
On Jan 20 AW&ST reported:
The new cracking is slightly different and viewed as more significant, though. It has been seen on two A380s that were being scrutinized. The damage was spotted when a customer aircraft underwent a C check within the last few weeks. One of the brackets—on its vertical part—had a more significant crack than the original hairline stresses, prompting Airbus to notify safety authorities and to launch a wider inspection of nine aircraft; evidence of cracking was found on a second aircraft.
As part of the root cause analysis, Airbus instrumented one of its own aircraft to assess whether the company’s original wing load estimates were faulty. It was determined that was not the case. The likely cause was found in the assembly process, in which too much stress is applied to the bracket when the wing skin is attached to the rib. The part itself is not being redesigned, but the assembly process is being changed as a long-term solution.