The hackers responsible for the $41 million hack on the cryptocurrency casino Stake have recently transferred an additional $328,000 million worth of Polygon (MATIC) and BNB (BNB) tokens, according to blockchain security firm CertiK. These recent movements of funds have occurred following the exploit on September 4th. This article analyzes the ongoing actions of the hackers and the growing losses within the cryptocurrency industry.
The most recent transfer involved the movement of 300 BNB tokens, equivalent to approximately $61,500, to an externally owned address. These tokens were then bridged to the Avalanche blockchain on September 11th. Additionally, 520,000 MATIC tokens worth over $266,000 were moved to Avalanche seven hours earlier. The combined value of the transferred tokens amounts to $328,000, in addition to the $4.5 million already stolen and bridged to the Bitcoin blockchain on September 7th. However, these transfers represent only 1.2% of the total $41 million stolen by the hackers.
The hack on Stake occurred on September 4th, when the hackers gained access to the private key of Stake’s Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum hot wallets. This breach allowed them to carry out the successful attack, which led to the theft of $41 million. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) suspects that North Korea’s Lazarus Group was responsible for this exploit.
The hack on Stake contributes to the growing tally of cryptocurrency hacks and scams, which now exceeds $1 billion in 2023. CertiK previously reported the total losses to be $997 million at the end of August, but recent attacks have pushed the figure past the $1 billion mark. In addition to the Stake hack, there have been other significant incidents, such as a phishing attack that resulted in the loss of $24 million in staked Ether (ETH) and the compromise of Vitalik Buterin’s X (formerly Twitter) account, which led to a nonfungible token scam totaling $691,000. Considering these events, CertiK’s initial estimate of $1.04 billion for August appears to be conservative.
Several other notable incidents have occurred in the cryptocurrency industry in recent times. The Pepe (PEPE) coin experienced a withdrawal incident that cost investors $13.2 million, the Exactly Protocol suffered an exploit resulting in $7.3 million in losses, and a security vulnerability in Balancer caused $2.1 million in damages. These incidents further contribute to the overall losses suffered by cryptocurrency investors and users.
The movement of stolen funds by the hackers involved in the Stake hack highlights the ongoing challenges faced by the cryptocurrency industry in terms of security. With losses now exceeding $1 billion in 2023, it is evident that malicious actors continue to exploit vulnerabilities within the ecosystem. Cryptocurrency users and the industry as a whole must remain vigilant in implementing robust security measures to protect against such attacks.
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