Justin Sun Offers White Hat Bounty to Poloniex Hackers
Justin Sun, the founder of Tron, has given hackers who stole funds from Poloniex seven days to return the majority of the stolen funds in exchange for a white hat bounty. If they do not comply, law enforcement will be engaged. Sun provided three wallet addresses where the hackers could transfer the stolen funds and assured users that an internal investigation was underway and affected assets would be fully reimbursed due to the platform’s “healthy financial position.”
PeckShield, a blockchain security firm, alerted community members about outflows from Poloniex hot wallets on Nov. 10. The initial estimate of losses was around $33 million, but this number was later updated to over $120 million in cryptocurrencies across Ethereum, Tron, and Bitcoin networks.
The on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence revealed that the hacker bought $20 million worth of Tronโs native token TRX shortly after the heist, causing a brief 25% spike in TRX prices.
Poloniex and Other Exchange Hacks
Poloniex, acquired by Circle in 2018 and invested in by Sun in 2019, is one of the oldest digital asset trading venues founded in 2013. Prior to the hack, it boasted over $600 million in daily trading volume according to CoinMarketCap.
This is not the first hack involving Sun-tied crypto exchanges. HTX, formerly Huobi, suffered an $8 million hack two months prior. However, HTX recovered stolen assets after hackers returned 5,000 ETH. Other platforms like South Korean exchange GDAC also experienced exploits resulting in losses worth millions.
Hot Take
Justin Sun’s offer of a white hat bounty to Poloniex hackers demonstrates a new approach to handling cryptocurrency hacks. By giving hackers a chance to return stolen funds in exchange for a reward, Sun aims to mitigate losses and protect users’ assets. This proactive stance could set a precedent for dealing with future exchange hacks within the crypto industry.
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