Russian Hackers Responsible For FTX Breach?
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October 13, 2023 3:33 pm
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Last November, FTX suffered a $400 million breach from an unknown attacker.
On-chain sleuths had their various suspects in mind, ranging from disgruntled employees of the now-defunct exchange to the North Korean Lazarus Group.
Now, on-chain analysts have narrowed down the potential suspects and traced some of the stolen funds back to Russia.
Analysts claim that the hacker converted a portion of the loot using RenBridge and then later put the funds through a tumbler to further mask addresses.
It remains to be seen if any of the funds will be recovered, here’s what is currently being reported:
Elliptic Maps Stolen #FTX #Crypto Trail, Links to Russian Cyber Gangs https://t.co/E7WS1tB0Qz
— Bitcoin.com News (@BTCTN) October 13, 2023
FTX $400 million hack to Russian hackers
-method of laundering employed by the attacker-attacker was converting the stolen funds to Bitcoin using Renbridge
-service owned by the bankrupt exchange sister company
-Alameda Research— ₿ ⚡️ (@btc1crypto) October 12, 2023
According to CoinDesk:
“Of the 4,536 Bitcoins converted from ether at RenBridge, 2,849 BTC was sent through mixers, predominantly a service called ChipMixer,” Ellipic said.
“Tracing these assets becomes more challenging, however at least $4 million was transferred to exchanges, where it may have been cashed out.”
One user offered this alternative theory: “FTX hack was not inside job. hackers likely had access to the keys for weeks or months. probably russian group. has def hacked cex’s + successfully laundered crypto before.”
ps: the security posture of FTX was detailed in this bankruptcy report 😬 https://t.co/zfEpBJA4Tl
pss: FTX hack was not inside job. hackers likely had access to the keys for weeks or months. probably russian group. has def hacked cex's + successfully laundered crypto before. pic.twitter.com/NHEUVvQCfm
— Tay 💖 (@tayvano_) October 10, 2023
Chain Affairs writes: “The plot thickens in the FTX stolen funds case! Elliptic’s analysis points towards Russian hackers as potential culprits, challenging the initial suspicion of North Korean Lazarus Group involvement.”
🕵️♂️ The plot thickens in the #FTX stolen funds case! 🕵️♀️📉 Elliptic's analysis points towards Russian hackers as potential culprits, challenging the initial suspicion of North Korean Lazarus Group involvement. 🇷🇺🧩🔍 #CryptoSecurity #HackingMyst pic.twitter.com/ocAjxPcgZM
— ChainAffairs ⚡ (@ChainAffairs) October 13, 2023
Crypto Potato added this to the conversation:
There is speculation that the perpetrators could have made off with a larger sum if not for the swift action taken by FTX staff and bankruptcy advisors.
They successfully safeguarded assets of over $300 million before the thief had a chance to gain access to them.
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