The CoinEx exchange was hacked. About $54 million stolen
Date: 2023-09-13 Author: Karina Ziganova Categories: BLOCKCHAIN, IN WORLD
The CoinEx cryptocurrency exchange was subject to a hacker attack, as a result of which cryptocurrency was stolen from the ETH, TRON and Polygon hot wallets. According to initial estimates, the amount of damage was $28 million, but later it increased to $54 million
What happened on CoinEx
PeckShield analysts noticed suspicious activity on the exchange addresses. Later, the Arkham analytics platform reported that ConEx was actively transferring funds remaining from the compromised hot wallets to cold wallets.
In the cryptocurrency community, the exchange was suspected of an exit scam because it closed the ability to write comments in its official channels and limited the functionality of the platform without explanation.
Users of the platform received a message that wallets were “closed for maintenance” for an indefinite period. Deposits and withdrawals are not available.
CoinEx promises compensation
Later, on September 12, the crypto exchange confirmed the hacking and published a statement in its official channels. It states that the unauthorized transactions affected $ETH, $TRON and $MATIC, while the exact amount of losses is still being determined. CoinEx assured users that the stolen amount was only a small part of the total assets of the crypto exchange.
“We assure all users: your assets are safe and untouched. Affected parties will receive 100% compensation for any losses associated with this hack. For additional security, deposit and withdrawal services have been temporarily suspended and will be resumed after a thorough review.”
In addition, exchange specialists identified suspicious addresses associated with the hack. They encourage other cryptocurrency platforms and projects to pay attention to activity at these addresses in the hope of identifying the attackers.
The exchange temporarily closed the ability to write comments in its Telegram channels. They are now open again.
Hacking and hacker attacks are a common occurrence in the cryptocurrency industry. According to the latest data, since the beginning of the year, the industry has experienced more than 200 incidents and lost assets worth about $1.25 billion, with more than $23 million stolen from projects in August alone.
