CertiK: Hackers Shift BNB, MATIC in $41M Stake Heist Move

The hackers responsible for the $41 million hack on cryptocurrency casino Stake have made further movements with their stolen funds. According to blockchain security firm CertiK, the hackers transferred $328,000 worth of Polygon (MATIC) and Binance Coin (BNB) tokens following the exploit on September 4.

One transfer involved 300 BNB tokens worth $61,500, which were sent to an externally owned address. These tokens were then bridged to the Avalanche blockchain on September 11. Another 520,000 MATIC tokens worth over $266,000 were also moved to Avalanche earlier that same day.

These recent transfers add to the $4.5 million in stolen funds that were previously bridged to the Bitcoin blockchain on September 7. However, the total amount transferred only represents 1.2% of the total $41 million stolen by the hackers.

It is believed that the hackers gained access to the private key of Stake’s Binance Smart Chain and Ethereum hot wallets in order to conduct the hack. The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) suspects that North Korea’s Lazarus Group was behind the exploit.

This latest hack brings the total amount lost from hacks and scams in the cryptocurrency industry to well over $1 billion in 2023. According to CertiK, the figure was previously reported to be $997 million at the end of August, but several attacks in the last two weeks have pushed the total over the $1 billion mark.

In addition to the Stake hack, there have been other notable incidents in September. A cryptocurrency whale lost $24 million in staked Ether (ETH) in a phishing attack, and Vitalik Buterin’s X account was compromised, leading to a nonfungible token scam that resulted in losses of $691,000. These incidents, along with others, bring the total estimated amount lost to at least $1.04 billion.

Other recent incidents include the withdrawal incident involving Pepe coin, which cost investors $13.2 million, the Exactly Protocol’s $7.3 million exploit, and a security vulnerability on Balancer, which caused $2.1 million in damage. These events highlight the ongoing challenges faced by the cryptocurrency industry in terms of security and the potential for financial loss.

Overall, the increasing frequency and magnitude of cryptocurrency hacks and scams serve as a reminder of the importance of robust security measures and vigilant user behavior in the industry.

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