Coinrail hacking causes cryptocurrency Ripple effect

Jun 11, 2018

Source

On Sunday, 10th June 2018, Coinrail released a statement alerting users of a cyber attack responsible for up to 30% of total coin reserves being hacked. Panic followed, resulting in a sharp drop in the value of Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ripple and other cryptocurrencies across the South Korean crypto market.

According to Coindesk, 'For the 30 percent that were compromised, the firm said two-thirds of them are currently frozen. Meanwhile, it's still investigating the final third of those tokens with "police, investigators, relevant exchanges and project developers."'

Screenshot from 10 June 2018 Forbes article by Chuck Jones

Thankfully, cash can't be hacked. 

The blow to Bitcoin and the cryptocurrency market as a whole reminds us of the dangers of going cashless. Reuters points out how it once again highlighted the security risks and the weak regulation of global cryptocurrency markets

Excerpt from Quartz article

...A wallet address that has been linked to the alleged attacker appeared to have stolen more than $40 million worth of cryptocurrency.

The hacking attack on Coinrail comes after Japan's cyrptocurrency exchange Coincheck was hacked earlier this year in a high-profile theft of its digital currency.

About $1.1 billion worth of cryptocurrency has been stolen by hackers in the first half of this year...

Read full Quartz article here

Screenshot from 10 June 2018 Coinrail Tweet

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Coindesk Coinrail Exchange Hacked... (11 June 2018) Coinrail, a cryptocurrency exchange based in South Korea, said on Sunday its platform has been hacked, with other sources suggesting it lost cryptocurrencies totaling as much as $40 million in the attack.

Forbes Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ripple & Other CCs Fall... (10 June 2018)  Coinrail is a cryptocurrency exchange in South Korea, and it announced on Sunday, June 10, that there had been a hacking attempt. Its website said, “70% of its total coin/total reserves were safe” and, “Two-thirds of the coins confirmed to have been leaked are covered by freezing / recalling through consultation with each coach and related exchanges.” 

Quartz Bitcoin crashed after another crypto exchange got hacked (11 June 2018) Bitcoin fell more than 10% yesterday (June 11) to its lowest price in two months, after a relatively small crypto exchange in South Korea reported a hack. The crash widens bitcoin’s year-to-date losses to as much as 50%, wiping about $120 billion off its market value this year. 

Reuters Bitcoin tumbles as hackers hit South Korean exchange Coinrail (11 June 2018) SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Coinrail said it was hacked over the weekend, sparking a steep fall in bitcoin amid renewed concerns about security at virtual currency exchanges as global policy makers struggled to regulate trading in the digital asset.

Last Updated: Jan 12, 2024