Hacker Behind Largest Cryptocurrency Theft In History Returns Over $200 Million
The hacker responsible for the largest cryptocurrency theft in history has undergone a change of heart. Over $200 million out of $600 million has been returned. Here's what happened
After raking in the biggest haul in cryptocurrency history, the perpetrators seemed to have undergone a change of heart.
Not much later after stealing over $600 million in digital coins from Poly Network, the hackers shocked the world by returning $260 million.
What is Poly Network?
Poly Network is a decentralised finance (DeFi) network that allows users to transact and deal in cryptocurrency.
Soon after receiving the money back, Poly Network announced that $353 million remain untraceable.
So far, we have received a total value of $4,772,297.675 assets returned by the hacker.
¡ª Poly Network (@PolyNetwork2) August 11, 2021
ETH address: $2,654,946.051
BSC address: $1,107,870.815
Polygon address: $1,009,480.809 pic.twitter.com/bPFAQk4mvS
On Tuesday, the blockchain-based platform was hacked. Chainanalysis, a blockchain forensics firm claims that the hackers capitalised on a flaw in Poly Network's digital contracts that facilitate movement of assets across blockchains.
Also read: Over $600 Million Stolen In Largest Cryptocurrency Hack In History
According to Reuters, the firm also accessed a few digital messages from the hackers, who claimed to have done it "for fun" in hopes in exposing Poly Network's vulnerability before anyone else.
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The alleged hacker(s) also claimed that returning the tokens was always part of the plan, saying "I'm not very interested in money".
Even then, it remains unclear who is behind the largest hack in cryptocurrency history.
It is possible that the hacker was left with no other choice but to return the money, given the hassle involved in laundering cryptocurrency.
Cryptoverse in shock
The mammoth scale of the haul wreaked havoc in cryptoverse. Tether's CEO on Twitter announced that the company has frozen $33 million after the attack and promised assistance to Poly Network.
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Cryptocurrency intelligence firm CipherTrace claims that attacks related to DeFi have reached an all-time high. DeFi platforms enable transactions between two parties directly without any intermediaries like banks or exchanges.
Also read: Risk In Bitcoin And Cryptocurrency Trading: A Financial Risk Expert Explains
2020 was a good year for crypto. Various platforms are now managing over $80 billion in cryptocurrency.
While DeFi makes transactions easy and reduces costs, the technological risks may begin to outweigh the benefits at the current rate of hacking.
In addition, regulatory bodies may be compelled to intervene if attacks intensify in the near future.
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