The popular South Korean cryptocurrency exchange, Youbit, has shut its doors after becoming subject to a second hacking campaign just eight months after the first attack.
Youbit allows its users to buy, sell or trade bitcoin and other altcoins. However, the firm recently filed for bankruptcy after the latest hack caused the firm to lose over 17% of its assets. The company declined to confirm how much the assets were worth while the attack was taking place. Youbit, formerly known as Yapizon, lost a total of 4,000 bitcoins (estimated at $73 million USD) following the latest attack.
The South Korean Internet and Security Agency (KISA), confirmed that they have launched an investigation into the nature of the attack and the responsible parties, as well as how they managed to infiltrate Youbit’s system. KISA is responsible for investigating cybercrimes in the country.
KISA confirmed that the earlier attack on Youbit was likely conducted by state-backed North Korean hackers. The same group of hackers was also accused of conducting attacks on several other major South Korean crypto exchanges, including Coinis and Bithumb. The agency has not yet delivered any further comment on the latest attack.
Youbit recently released a statement which apologized to its user base and noted that all Youbit clients would receive 75% of their total crypto holdings back. According to Youbit, the hackers failed to steal the company's entire stash of virtual currency, as most were stored it in a cold wallet. A cold wallet is a secure storage system that holds cryptocurrencies that are not being currently traded.
Youbit is considered one of the smaller South Korean crypto exchange. The crypto giant, Bithumb, accounts for over 70% of the South Korean daily trading volume.
Cybercriminals have been actively targeting crypto exchanges as of late, and considering the price boom, they have plenty of incentive to do so. Some hackers have developed a malware which hijacks a victim's device to mine cryptocurrencies, while other hackers have taken to holding a victim's device for a ransom payable only in bitcoin.
Youbit allows its users to buy, sell or trade bitcoin and other altcoins. However, the firm recently filed for bankruptcy after the latest hack caused the firm to lose over 17% of its assets. The company declined to confirm how much the assets were worth while the attack was taking place. Youbit, formerly known as Yapizon, lost a total of 4,000 bitcoins (estimated at $73 million USD) following the latest attack.
The South Korean Internet and Security Agency (KISA), confirmed that they have launched an investigation into the nature of the attack and the responsible parties, as well as how they managed to infiltrate Youbit’s system. KISA is responsible for investigating cybercrimes in the country.
KISA confirmed that the earlier attack on Youbit was likely conducted by state-backed North Korean hackers. The same group of hackers was also accused of conducting attacks on several other major South Korean crypto exchanges, including Coinis and Bithumb. The agency has not yet delivered any further comment on the latest attack.
Youbit recently released a statement which apologized to its user base and noted that all Youbit clients would receive 75% of their total crypto holdings back. According to Youbit, the hackers failed to steal the company's entire stash of virtual currency, as most were stored it in a cold wallet. A cold wallet is a secure storage system that holds cryptocurrencies that are not being currently traded.
Youbit is considered one of the smaller South Korean crypto exchange. The crypto giant, Bithumb, accounts for over 70% of the South Korean daily trading volume.
Cybercriminals have been actively targeting crypto exchanges as of late, and considering the price boom, they have plenty of incentive to do so. Some hackers have developed a malware which hijacks a victim's device to mine cryptocurrencies, while other hackers have taken to holding a victim's device for a ransom payable only in bitcoin.