Monero Community Wallet Loses $460,000 in Major Exploit
The Monero community wallet recently fell victim to a significant exploit, resulting in the loss of its entire balance of 2,675.73 Monero (XMR), equivalent to almost $460,000. The cause and origin of the exploit remain unknown.
Late Disclosure Raises Concerns
Reports indicate that the hack occurred on September 1st but was only disclosed on GitHub two months later, on November 2nd, 2023. Monero developer Luigi revealed that the community wallet had been completely emptied and that the breach’s source had yet to be identified.
“The CCS Wallet was drained of 2,675.73 XMR (the entire balance) on the 1st of September, 2023, just before midnight. The hot wallet, used for payments to contributors, is untouched; its balance is ~244 XMR. We have thus far not been able to ascertain the source of the breach.”
Cybersecurity firm SlowMist dismissed the possibility of a loophole in Monero’s privacy model as the cause of the hack. Moonstone Research investigated the stolen funds’ movement and traced three of the hacker’s transfers.
Details of the Hack
The CSS wallet, which funds development proposals through Monero’s Community Crowdfunding system, was set up on an Ubuntu system in 2020. The only other individual with access to the wallet seed phrase was Monero developer Ricardo ‘Fluffypony’ Spagni.
A hot wallet on a Windows 10 Pro desktop was used by Luigi to make payments to community members. The CSS wallet would fund the hot wallet as needed. However, on September 1st, the CSS wallet was completely drained in nine transactions.
The Monero core team is now seeking support from the General Fund to cover current liabilities. Speculations among developers include the possibility of the wallet keys being available online on the Ubuntu server or the compromise of Luigi’s Windows machine through an undetected botnet.
Monero Price Analysis
Currently trading at $166, Monero has seen a 0.6% increase over the past 24 hours and a 5.59% increase over the past week. However, its price has dropped from $170.80 to its current level. Changelly’s price forecast suggests a potential 4.64% increase above $170, but the impact of the hack remains uncertain and may cause short-term drops in Monero’s value. Technical indicators show a 58% bullish neutral market sentiment, while the Fear & Greed Index indicates greed with a score of 68.
Hot Take: Monero Community Wallet Falls Victim to Exploit, Losing Almost $460,000
The Monero community wallet recently experienced a major exploit that resulted in the loss of its entire balance, worth nearly $460,000. The cause and source of the exploit are still unknown. Late disclosure of the hack raised concerns among users, as it took two months for it to be revealed on GitHub. Cybersecurity firm SlowMist dismissed any possibility of a loophole in Monero’s privacy model being responsible for the hack. The details of how the hack occurred suggest that compromised wallet keys or an undetected botnet could be involved. Despite this incident, Monero’s price has shown some resilience but may experience short-term drops due to the news of the hack.
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