A recent security breach on the Bybit crypto exchange platform has led to a significant hack, with an attacker compromising one of the exchange’s ETH wallets. The hack resulted in the theft of approximately $1.4 billion worth of ETH, stETH, mETH, and cmETH, which were transferred to several wallets.
According to Bybit, the incident occurred when the exchange’s ETH multisig cold wallet executed a transfer to its warm wallet. However, the transaction was manipulated through a sophisticated attack that masked the signing interface, allowing the attacker to gain control of the affected ETH cold wallet.
The $1.4 billion exploit is one of the largest crypto hacks in history, accounting for 16% of all previous hacks, according to DefiLlama data. Despite the significant loss, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou assured users that the exchange is solvent and can maintain normal function even if the stolen funds are not recovered.
Bybit’s reserve was valued at $16.2 billion before the hack, with the stolen funds representing 8.64% of its total assets. Crypto experts have advised exchanges and service providers to blacklist the addresses associated with the hack to prevent the hacker from selling the stolen funds.
The hack was first noticed by crypto investigator ZachXBT, who noted that the attacker had split the tokens across several wallets. This move is likely an attempt to launder the stolen funds and make them more difficult to track.According to crypto analytics platform Arkham, the attacker has already sold $200 million worth of stETH. This sale has likely been made on the black market or through other illicit means.
The hack has had a slight impact on the crypto market, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP, and Solana experiencing a correction in the past 24 hours. However, the market appears to be stabilizing, and it remains to be seen how the hack will affect the market in the long term.
Bybit has assured users that their assets are safe and that the exchange is working to recover the stolen funds. The exchange has also pledged to increase security measures to prevent similar hacks in the future. The hack serves as a reminder of the importance of security in the crypto space. Exchanges and users must remain vigilant and take steps to protect their assets from hackers.
In the wake of the hack, Bybit has encouraged users to remain calm and to report any suspicious activity to the exchange’s support team. The exchange is working to resolve the situation and to prevent similar hacks from occurring in the future.
