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Following the hack, WazirX temporarily suspended trading and withdrawals to protect user funds and conduct a thorough investigation.
The WazirX hacker has recently moved $57 million worth of stolen Ether (ETH) to new cryptocurrency wallets.
This move is part of an ongoing attempt by the hacker to launder the stolen assets following one of the largest crypto hacks of 2024, which saw the theft of over $230 million from the Indian exchange.
Fund Movements amid Bug Bounty Efforts
On July 22, blockchain security firm PeckShield reported that the hacker moved 16,350 Ether (ETH), worth over $57 million, into two new cryptocurrency wallets. Of this amount, a staggering $54 million was transferred to a single address labeled “0x58d”. This method is a common tactic among crypto hackers to avoid detection and prevent authorities from freezing stolen assets.
#PeckShieldAlert The #WazirX Hacker -labeled addresses has transferred ~16.35K $ETH (worth ~$57m) to 2 new addresses pic.twitter.com/AYqwXYxN15
— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) July 22, 2024
In an effort to recover the stolen funds, WazirX has launched two bounty programs to recover the stolen funds. The first, the “track and freeze” bounty, offers up to $10,000 in Tether (USDT) for information that leads to freezing the stolen assets.
The second program, the “white hat recovery” bounty, rewards ethical hackers with up to 10% of the amount they help recover, with the cap recently increased to $23 million based on community feedback. So far, 54 white hat hackers have signed up for the recovery program.
The hacker’s recent conversion of $149 million worth of altcoins into ETH raises the difficulty of tracking and recovering the stolen assets. The WazirX hack has been linked to the notorious Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking collective known for its high-profile cyberattacks. North Korea has been implicated in about $2.4 billion worth of cryptocurrency thefts since 2020, with $1.69 billion of this amount resulting from breaches involving compromised private keys.
WazirX’s Response and Broader Market Impact
Following the hack, WazirX temporarily suspended trading and withdrawals to protect user funds and conduct a thorough investigation. The exchange’s founder, Nischal Shetty, emphasized that this suspension was necessary to ensure the safety of assets and to develop a plan for resuming withdrawals.
Adding to the chaos, scammers have exploited the situation by sending phishing emails to WazirX users, pretending to offer compensation for the stolen funds. WazirX has issued warnings to its users to remain vigilant and avoid interacting with such fraudulent messages.
The hack comes amidst a challenging period for the cryptocurrency industry. Shortly after the WazirX breach, Rho Markets experienced an $8 million exploit due to a vulnerability in its blockchain oracle. Luckily, Rho Markets was able to recover the stolen funds and resume operations. In addition, the popular Telegram-based game Hamster Kombat faced phishing attacks, further illustrating the current security challenges in the crypto space.
