Orbit Chain suffers 48 million hack A breakdown of the incident
A mind-blowing revelation has shaken the crypto world as a hacker successfully pulls off a daring heist, making off with a whopping $48 million from Orbit Chain and cleverly laundering the funds through Tornado Cash. This shocking news comes to light after a period of silence following the initial breach at the beginning of the New Year festivities.
Orbit Chain’s cross-chain bridge became the target of the breach, resulting in the theft of millions, with estimates reaching as high as $100 million.
The Heist Uncovered
On June 8th, the hacker orchestrated a series of seven transactions, moving 12,932 ETH, valued at $47.7 million, to a new address, as per data from Arkham Intelligence. Subsequently, the funds were routed through Tornado Cash, a popular crypto money launderer known for concealing the source of illicit gains. A closer look at the transactions, based on Etherscan records, shows transfers in batches of 100 ETH.
Remaining Holdings
Interestingly, the hacker has yet to cash out the $20 million in Dai (DAI) that was stolen, along with other assets moved through the cross-chain bridge. This leaves them with a significant balance of $71.2 million, including $51.1 million in Ether tokens, as well as holdings in wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC), wrapped Ethereum (wETH), Orbit Chain (ORC), and USD Coin (USDC).
The exploit unfolded in the final hours of 2023, casting a shadow over the start of the new year on December 31st. Orbit Chain quickly confirmed the breach the following day, alerting international law enforcement agencies to track down the culprit and recover the stolen assets.
The Trail Goes Cold
Tornado Cash, a respected cryptocurrency privacy mixer, provides users with anonymity by mixing their coins with others, making it challenging to trace the original source of the funds. Unfortunately, this anonymity feature is often exploited by hackers to launder their illicit gains, complicating the process of asset recovery.
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Tags: Hack