Hacked Exchange Cryptopia Discloses Estimate of Stolen Crypto

New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has given an idea of the losses arising from a hack on its platform last month.

AccessTimeIconFeb 27, 2019 at 10:30 a.m. UTC
Updated Aug 18, 2021 at 10:51 p.m. UTC

Presented By Icon

Election 2024 coverage presented by

Stand with crypto

Update (09:03 UTC, Feb. 28, 2019): Cryptopia has now announced on Twitter that it aims to re-open its platform “as read only” by March 4. It further said that co- founders Adam Clark and Rob Dawson are back at the company and their focus will be to set “a clear strategic direction moving forwards.”

---

  • Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
    13:18
    Bitcoin Mining in the U.S. Will Become 'a Lot More Decentralized': Core Scientific CEO
  • Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
    05:10
    Binance to Discontinue Its Nigerian Naira Services After Government Scrutiny
  • The first video of the year 2024
    04:07
    The first video of the year 2024
  • The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
    40:07
    The last regression video of the year 3.67.0
  • New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange Cryptopia has given an idea of the losses arising from a hack on its platform last month.

    After being almost silent since the breach, the firm published a series of updates via Twitter on Wednesday. Most notably, Cryptopia provided an update on how much of the total assets held by the platform was lost in the cyber-attack, saying:

    "We are continuing to work on assessing the impact incurred as a result of the hack in January. Currently, we have calculated that worst case 9.4% of our total holdings was stolen."

    It did not provide an idea of that amount in monetary terms.

    Cryptopia went offline on Jan. 15 saying it had suffered a "security breach which resulted in significant losses." The exchange did not provide any specific information at the time and has since said it cannot comment while an investigation by the New Zealand Police is underway.

    A blockchain data analytics firm estimated after the attack that as much as $16 million in ether and ERC-20 tokens could have lost. Notably, hackers still had control over Cryptopia even after the police had been brought in and reportedly stole an additional 1,675 ether from 17,000 wallets – an amount worth about $181,000 at the time.

    In Wednesday’s tweets, the exchange said it is “securing each wallet individually” to ensure it is “fully secure” when resuming trading.

    Cryptopia also warned:

    “As a result of the new wallets please immediately refrain from depositing funds into old Cryptopia addresses. We have more updates to come tomorrow, keep an eye on our page.”

    New Zealand Police said on Feb. 7 that it expected to complete the inspection of Cryptopia’s premises by mid-month. Cryptopia confirmed in a tweet on Feb. 14 that the police had given them access back to its building, while the investigation was continuing.

    Detective inspector Greg Murton of the New Zealand Police said at the time that the case is “progressing well and advancing on several fronts,” adding:

    “The focus is on identifying those behind this offending and retrieving the stolen cryptocurrency. This investigation is expected to take a considerable amount of time to resolve due to the complexity of the cyber environment.”

    Hacker image via Shutterstock 

    Disclosure

    Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information have been updated.

    CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.


    Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.