tokenist.com
Hackers attacked the South Korea-based crypto exchange GDAC on Sunday, stealing $13 million in crypto funds, or around 23% of its custodial assets. According to GDAC, the perpetrators stole 61 bitcoin, more than 350 ether, 10 million WEMIX coins, and 220,000 USDT.
Hackers Steal 23% of GDAC Assets
South Korean crypto exchange GDAC lost $13 million in a hack that occurred on Sunday. The attack, confirmed by the exchange on Monday, led to a transfer of crypto assets, including more than 60 bitcoin and 350 ether, to unidentified wallets.
The transferred amount represents roughly 23% of GDAC’s custodial assets, and apart from bitcoin and ether funds, the hackers also stole 10 million WEMIX tokens and 220,000 USDT. The company said it had informed the authorities about the attack and is working to retrieve the funds.
GDAC also said it had halted withdrawal and deposit services after the attack and urged other crypto exchanges to block incoming transactions from suspicious wallet addresses.
Crypto Remains the Hackers’ Favorite Playground
The crypto industry has fallen victim to a myriad of hacks and exploits in the past year and a half, in some of which attackers stole hundreds of millions of dollars. According to a report by TRM Labs, $3.7 billion of crypto funds were stolen last year due to hacks. The vast majority of those attacks, around 80%, targeted the decentralized finance (DeFi) space.
The report highlighted ten “mega hacks” in 2022, where perpetrators stole $100 million or more. These mega hacks accounted for around 7% of the total amount. The Axie Infinity’s Ronin bridge saw the biggest exploit, losing $625 million in an attack in 2022.
The series of hacks, along with several collapses in the industry last year, has forced global regulators to tighten the scrutiny of crypto, particularly in the US. Earlier this year, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ordered crypto exchange Kraken to shut down its staking service and pay a fine of $30 million, citing a violation of US securities laws.
Similarly, the European Union (EU) also ramped up efforts to regulate the crypto space. Last month, the EU lawmakers voted in favor of the anti-money laundering (AML) regulation and imposed a limit on anonymous crypto wallets. The cap is a part of the bloc’s revamp of its AML regulations, which will target decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs), non-fungible token (NFT) platforms, and DeFi platforms.
How can crypto protect itself from the countless hacks? Let us know in the comments below.