Large-scale hack of Poloniex and money laundering via Tornado Cash noted

A recent development in cybercrime has drawn attention to a significant theft and subsequent money laundering operation. The perpetrator of the Poloniex hack, whose Ethereum address ends in 0x3E…fDFd, laundered approximately $308,000 worth of cryptocurrency (100 ETH) via the Tornado Cash mixing protocol. This marks the first time this hacker has used Tornado Cash to launder illegally obtained funds, reports say WuBlockchain.

An estimated value of $114 million stolen

The hack, which took place on November 10 last year, led to the theft of several cryptocurrencies with an estimated value of $114 million from Poloniex. The analysis showed that the Ethereum wallet in question made 357 transactions, while a Tron blockchain wallet sent around $42 million to different addresses.

Further investigation indicates that the person responsible for the Poloniex heist likely has ties to the Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking organization known for extensive cybercrimes targeting financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms.

Also HTX and Heco cross-chain bridge attacked

In addition to the Poloniex hack, the crypto exchange HTX and the Heco cross-chain bridge were also attacked, leading to the loss of more than $97 million worth of various tokens. A suspected private key vulnerability was identified as the root cause of these attacks, with perpetrators using the Heco Bridge to transfer tokens from user wallets to their own accounts.

This incident highlights the urgent need for stricter security measures within crypto exchanges and blockchain protocols. Meanwhile, security services and cyber experts continue their investigations and are working hard to track down the suspects behind these large-scale hacks. Stay tuned for more updates on this ongoing case.