An anonymous hacker or hackers has apparently managed to steal $20 million in several crypto assets from US government wallets. Reportedly, the hackers have already begun laundering the money.
These stolen funds initially came from the $3.6 billion that law enforcement seized from Bitfinex hackers.
US Government Hacked?
$20 million in assorted crypto assets from the US Government’s massive stash have evidently been stolen by unknown hackers. This hack was first noticed by Arkham Intelligence, who stated that these assets unexpectedly moved.
“US Government linked address appears to have been compromised for $20 million. We believe the attacker has already begun laundering the proceeds through suspicious addresses linked to a money laundering service,” Arkham stated.
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Crypto sleuth ZachXBT, who recently cracked another crypto money laundering case, concurred with this conclusion. He noted that these possibly stolen funds immediately moved to several instant exchanges, presumably so the hacker could quickly profit. The stolen assets are all in USDC, USDT, aUSDC, and ETH.
The United States is one of the largest single holders of Bitcoin and other crypto assets due to a long history of massive criminal asset seizures. In the past, even minor hints of preparation for a hypothetical sell-off have caused panic in the markets. If these hackers can penetrate the government’s security and successfully launder stolen funds, it would be a sign of concern.
Arkham mentioned that these assets came from the $3.6 billion in Bitfinex seizures, further complicating the potential fallout. The US government has taken several steps this month to begin the restitution process from the 2016 hack. Specifically, it designated a path for defrauded users to recover assets and compelled the hackers to renounce claims to the funds.
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As of now, however, the identities of the attackers and the nature of this wallet vulnerability are unknown. Moreover, the US government has not given any confirmation regarding the incident.
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