Alex Protocol Attack Hacker Disperses Stolen STX through 9700 Transactions
ALEX Protocol Issues Update on Recent Attack, Reveals Extent of Damage
In a recent announcement, the team behind the ALEX Protocol, a Bitcoin layer two (L2) network bridge utilizing the Stacks (STX) chain for BTC-native DeFi applications, provided an update on a recent cyber attack. The post revealed that the attacker behind the incident had created over 4,700 unique addresses, a significant increase from just 100 in the previous week.
The attacker proceeded to carry out more than 9,700 traceable transactions in order to distribute the stolen STX tokens. Currently, the attacker has deposited 8,373,587 STX tokens into centralized exchanges, while holding around 5,560,332 STX tokens in various wallets with balances exceeding 100 STX units.
Security Update for ALEX Protocol
As of June 17th at 11AM, the attacker has executed over 9700 transactions, involving the creation of new wallet addresses and the dispersal of STX balances across these addresses. The number of traceable transactions is on the rise, indicating the extent of the breach.
A closer examination of the attack on the ALEX Protocol reveals that the breach occurred through a compromise of private keys during a smart contract upgrade. The attacker utilized similar tactics to the Ronin bridge hacker, who caused losses exceeding $600 million in digital assets.
Despite efforts by the ALEX Labs team to offer a 10 percent bounty reward to the attacker, reports suggest that the hacker declined the offer following an identity breach.
Market Impact and Implications
In the aftermath of the attack on ALEX Labs, the value of Stacks (STX) has dropped by over 16 percent in the past week, currently trading at approximately $1.82 on Monday. While most centralized exchanges have frozen the stolen funds, the attacker has managed to liquidate a portion, contributing to a bearish outlook on crypto assets.
Tags: Hack, Cybersecurity, ALEX Protocol, Stacks, DeFi, Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, Security Breach