Cryptocurrency has always provided an interesting mix of temptations and difficulties for those trying to steal it. It is a lucrative target because it is digital cash held in multibillion-dollar sums on hackable, internet-connected networks. However, once stolen, the blockchains on which almost every cryptocurrency is built allow for tracking the money's every move and, in many cases, identifying the thieves.
Recently, unknown transactions were reported to have drained FTX wallets. As per observers, FTX was hacked or insiders stole client funds during the abrupt FTX collapse. There have been "unauthorized transactions" from the group's wallets to addresses not controlled by FTX, according to FTX US general counsel Ryne Miller. FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors yesterday. These creditors are concerned that some of their funds will be unavailable for payment.
On Twitter, a developer announced that "hundreds of millions of dollars" in cryptocurrency were being transferred from FTX wallets. Because of the late hour of the transactions, it appeared that liquidators were not assisting creditors.
Afterward, on-chain forensics expert ZachXBT tweeted that the receiving addresses were not FTX wallets, according to former FTX employees. Because FTX and FTX US are supposedly separate businesses and were operated as such, a hacker would be unlikely to gain simultaneous access to the private keys of both exchanges unless they had inside information or were insiders.
However, given FTX's demise, anything is possible. According to Bloomberg, junior employees took the initiative to sell off some of FTX's troubled assets. There are two major drainage areas that have been identified. It is possible that up to $383 million in cryptocurrency was stolen:
Main draining address:
https://etherscan.io/address/0x59abf3837fa962d6853b4cc0a19513aa031fd32b
Shitcoin draining address:
https://etherscan.io/address/0xd8019a114e86ad41d71a3eeb6620b19dd166a969
According to Nansen, a crypto analytics research firm, the outflows totaled at least $266 million. As per the Australian Financial Review, the number of missing funds in Ethereum, Solana, BNB LINK, AVAX, and MATIC could be as high as $600 million.
Were the FTX app and website also compromised?
There are also unconfirmed reports that the FTX app has been infected with malware and should no longer be used, as well as the FTX website. However, Rey, an FTX Telegram administrator, uploaded it.
Nevertheless, the puzzling scenario for the 1,2 million FTX customers is still evolving. The FTX app has been updated, but for the time being, experts recommend all FTX clients avoid running the update or interacting with their FTX account.
Customers are advised not to make any changes to their accounts until further information, presumably in the form of an official announcement from FTX, becomes available. According to his most recent tweet, Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is unimpressed with the latest turn of events. Elon Musk also contributed, despite the fact that he was expected to be preoccupied with the blue tick scandal.