In a significant security incident, a cryptocurrency wallet associated with the renowned exchange platform Binance fell victim to a breach, resulting in the unauthorized withdrawal of $27 million worth of Tether (USDT). The breach, brought to light by online investigator ZachXBT on Sunday, unfolded with the misappropriation of funds shifting from Tether to Ethereum (ETH) and subsequently to Bitcoin (BTC) through various exchanges and blockchain bridges.
The breach was initially detected when ZachXBT revealed that the stolen USDT underwent rapid conversion to ETH, facilitated by FixedFloat and ChangeNow services. Subsequently, the pilfered funds found their way to Bitcoin via THORChain. The incident came to attention following a $27 million withdrawal from Binance to the compromised wallet on Saturday.
Upon closer examination by Etherscan, it was revealed that in May 2019, the compromised wallet received a significant fund influx from a deployer address linked to Binance’s smart contract system. This latest event compounds the challenges faced by the cryptocurrency industry, with reported losses exceeding $699 million across 184 security incidents in the current quarter. Notably, the Lazarus Group accounted for a $291 million loss through social engineering schemes, while private key compromises contributed to a $204 million deficit. Incidents involving Mixin and Multichain led to a combined loss of $325 million, with malicious actors frequently targeting Web3 personnel.
As of the time of reporting, Binance has not issued an official statement addressing the security breach.
