Summary:
- Crypto exchange Bitrue said the hackers picked off less than 5% of the value custodied in one of its hot wallets.
- The platform lost $23 million in cryptocurrencies like ETH, QNT, GALA, SHIB, HOT, and MATIC.
- Withdrawals are temporarily suspended until April 18 for security reasons and all affected users will receive full compensation, the crypto exchange said.
Major crypto exchange Bitrue suffered a “brief exploit” on one of its hot wallets, the digital asset trading venue shared in a tweet on Friday. The hackers launched their attacker around 07:18 UTC on 14 April 2023.
Bitrue Halts Withdrawal
Bitrue quickly and prevented the further exploit of funds but not before the attackers stole $23 million from the hot wallet. The hackers successfully withdraw digital assets like ETH, QNT, GALA, SHIB, HOT, and MATIC.
Together, the stolen assets make up less than 5% of the funds held in Bitrue’s affected hot wallet.
The platform suspended withdrawals until April 18 citing security reasons. Notably, only one hot wallet was affected. Bitrue also said all users affected by the theft will receive compensation in full.
3/4: To conduct additional security checks, Bitrue will temporarily suspend all withdrawals and will reopen withdrawals on 18 April 2023. We seek your understanding and patience at this time. All identified users who are affected by this incident will be compensated in full.
The Singapore-based crypto exchange ranks 23rd among trading venues with over $1 billion in daily trading volume, per CoinMarketCap data.
Hacker Eye Crypto Exchange Assets
Today’s incident is the second crypto exchange to suffer theft in just a few days. On April 10, hackers stole $13 million from South Korean crypto exchange Gdac. In both cases, the attackers exploited hot wallets and drained funds before moving the assets to a different wallet.
In 2022, cybercriminals drained crypto exchanges of over $100 million by October. Decentralized finance protocols have had it worse, losing over $3 billion to illicit actors last year.