HTX Hack - September 2023
Incident Overview
HTX, formerly Huobi, was hacked with a total loss of 500 ether (ETH) worth around $8 million, according to HTX adviser and Tron founder Justin Sun. The incident occurred on Sunday Sept 24, 2023 and was identified immediately.
Attack Details
The HTX hack targeted the project's hot wallet, with nearly $8 million in funds stolen in the security incident. The hacked wallet appears to be one of HTX's hot wallets, with it receiving around $500 million in deposits from Binance since its creation in March, according to Arkham data.
Response and Resolution
HTX fully covered the losses, and funds are safe, Sun added on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter). Following the hack, HTX promptly reached out to the hacker and claimed to have identified their identity. In an effort to recover the stolen funds, HTX offered a 5% bounty amounting to around $400,000 and proposed not to pursue any legal action if 95% of the funds were returned before the deadline of October 2.
The hacker fully returned all funds, and HTX also paid the hacker a white hat bonus of 250 ETH.
Security Improvements
The cyberattack, detected on September 24, 2023, triggered an immediate response from HTX. They promptly changed the hot wallet address, set up a real-time monitoring mechanism, and established the SAFU fund, similar to that of Binance.
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