Binance assists BtcTurk attack probe, freezes $5.3M in ‘stolen funds’

Ciaran LyonsJun 23, 2024Binance assists BtcTurk attack probe, freezes $5.3M in ‘stolen funds’Binance is assisting in investigating the malicious attack on Turkish crypto exchange BtcTurk, according to Binance CEO Richard Teng.4225 Total views19 Total sharesListen to article 0:00NewsOwn this piece of crypto historyCollect this article as NFTJoin us on social networksCryptocurrency exchange Binance is allegedly assisting in investigating a malicious attack against Turkish crypto exchange BtcTurk, with over $5 million in stolen funds frozen, according to Binance CEO Richard Teng.

“Binance is assisting BtcTurk with investigations and have frozen over $5.3M in stolen funds so far,” Teng wrote in a June 22 X post.

According to its website, BtcTurk stated that the attack primarily affected holdings in hot wallets, which are software-based crypto wallets linked to the internet. Although hot wallets are more efficient for frequent transactions, they are more vulnerable to malicious hackers compared to offline cold storage.

“Only a portion of the balances of 10 cryptocurrencies in our hot wallets were affected by this cyber attack, while the majority of assets held in our cold wallets remain secure,” a Google-translated version of BtcTurk’s June 22 statement read. The exchange has over five million users.BtcTurk’s June 22 statement informing users of the malicious attack. Source: BtcTurk

Meanwhile, Teng informed his 299,800 X followers that Binance will provide updates once its investigations team has more information.

“Our investigations & security teams work around the clock as part of our proactive efforts to protect the ecosystem from bad actors. We will provide further updates as relevant,” Teng stated.Binance receives praise as bad actors continue to attack crypto exchanges

It comes after blockchain investigator ZackXBT praised Binance for its efforts in helping the broader community during security incidents.

“Binance gets crucified by the media when in reality their security team generally does more for victims + goes out of their way to assist in incident response,” ZachXBT stated on June 22 in an X post.

BtcTurk’s CEO Özgür Güneri has not yet made a public comment on X regarding the matter.

Related:Fake ID crypto exchange sign-ups attract 2-year prison sentence

It comes only days after Switzerland-based crypto exchange Lykke halted withdrawals after suffering an exploit on June 4.

Blockchain security researcher SomaXBT accused the team of attempting to hide the security breach, stating “@lykke CTX got exploited and lost $19.5 million worth crypto assets but the team is still trying to hide this fact.”

Cointelegraph has reached out to BtcTurk for comment but did not receive a response a time of publication.

Magazine: ‘Bitcoin Layer 2s’ aren’t really L2s at all: Here’s why that matters# Cryptocurrencies# Turkey# Hackers# Cryptocurrency Exchange# BTCTurk# Binance# Hacks# RegulationAdd reaction