December 16, 2022
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0Crypto Digest of All Important News [November 2022]
Don’t have time to follow all the events in the crypto space? Don’t worry! Our team has prepared an overview for you of the most significant events over the past month.
Read our previous crypto digest here.
Crypto digest for November 2022
1. Hackers began publishing Medibank customer data after the company refused to pay a ransom
Hackers who stole the personal information of 9.7 million customers of Medibank health insurance company have started publishing the stolen data.
We are talking about the data of 500 people.
“The criminal published a file with stolen data of Medibank customers. We take our responsibility for the safety of information seriously. Once again we sincerely apologize and continue to communicate with those whose personal data has been published,” the company said in a statement.
The published information includes the names and surnames of the insured, data on their treatment for alcohol and drug addiction, the results of tests for HIV infection, and reports of termination of pregnancy.
Medibank notes that it continues to cooperate with the Australian police in the investigation of the incident. In addition, the company has launched a support program for affected customers, providing psychological and financial assistance.
On November 8, unknown persons who stole Medibank customer data threatened to publish the stolen information within a day if they did not receive a ransom. Medibank confirmed receiving the criminals’ message.
The cyberattack on the company’s servers became known on October 14. Medibank said that criminals were unable to access customer data. Later, the company admitted that data was stolen, saying that the damage from the attack is estimated at $20 million. On November 7, Medibank announced that it would not pay a ransom. The company’s management considered that the ransom would not prevent the publication of stolen information and would not guarantee its return.
2. Crypto.com sent $400 million of Ether to the wrong address “by mistake”
It turns out that on October 21, the platform allegedly mistakenly sent 320,000 ETH to the address of another exchange, Gate.io. Later, the funds were returned – but the sediment, as they say, remained.
Interestingly, just a week after receiving such an unexpected “gift of fate” (and before its return), Gate.io published an official confirmation of the volume of their reserves.
It turns out that someone else’s Ether was also counted as part of the exchange’s reserves. It sounds a bit suspicious for a simple coincidence — maybe Crypto.com was just helping friends from Gate.io close a hole in their balance sheet before the audit of reserves?
Crypto.com also posted my breakdown of reserves by almost $2.9 billion the other day: interestingly, 20% of these reserves fall on the SHIB shield coin with a funny dog on the logo (the main value of which is that it is periodically promoted by Elon Musk just for fun.)
The best crypto wallets are here.
3. FTX crypto exchange reported a hack – hackers withdrew more than $380 million
FTX crypto exchange reported a hack. The attackers were able to take out more than $380 million from the site and transactions are continuing, and experts have already estimated losses at $600 million. Hackers used Trojans and auto-updates, and mass transfers to third-party addresses were made from FTX clients’ wallets.
The official Telegram channel of FTX support explained that “FTX has been hacked, FTX applications are infected, delete them, do not visit the FTX website, otherwise you may catch a Trojan.”
Tether developers promptly blacklisted parts of USDT related to the address involved in transfers after the FTX hack.
“Investigating anomalies with wallet movements related to the consolidation of FTX balances across exchanges — unclear facts as other movements unclear. We will share additional information as soon as we have it,” FTX clarified.
An announcement was posted on the exchange’s website that the company is currently unable to process withdrawals. “FTX is currently unable to process withdrawals. We strongly recommend not making a deposit. TRX, BTT, JST, SUN, and HT deposits are disabled,” FTX explained.
4. Genesis crypto exchange may soon declare bankruptcy
The Genesis cryptocurrency exchange risks following FTX to declare bankruptcy soon. This forecast is given by Bloomberg concerning sources familiar with the situation.
Genesis’ liquidity problems began after the FTX crash. The company collaborated with FTX, including providing loans to it.
Now Genesis is actively trying to attract investors who will be able to provide it with a loan worth about a billion dollars. Potential investors are warned that if the efforts fail, the company will have to declare bankruptcy.
Genesis, however, did not officially confirm this information, assuring that they aimed to find a way out of the situation.
According to Bloomberg, Genesis is also negotiating with the Binance cryptocurrency exchange. Its representatives did not comment on this information.
The secure and private Crypton Exchange is here.
5. FTX crypto exchange was hacked and more than $600 million was stolen
The collapse of FTX, which has already become one of the most spectacular in financial history, worsened as hundreds of millions of dollars were withdrawn from the cryptocurrency exchange a few hours after it filed for bankruptcy.
Late on the evening of November 11, more than $600 million was stolen from FTX cryptocurrency wallets. Shortly after, FTX stated on its official Telegram channel that it had been compromised by asking users not to install any new updates and to remove all FTX applications.
“FTX is hacked. FTX apps are malware. Delete them. The chat is open. Don’t go on FTX website, as it might download Trojans,” the account administrator wrote in the FTX Support Telegram chat. The report was confirmed by FTX General Counsel Ryan Miller.
Following the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings – FTX US and FTX [dot] com initiated precautionary steps to move all digital assets to cold storage. Process was expedited this evening – to mitigate damage upon observing unauthorized transactions.
Many FTX wallet holders have reported $0 balances in their wallets on FTX.com and FTX US. The transfers occurred on the same day the firm filed for bankruptcy. On Twitter, members of the cryptocurrency community quickly began to suggest that the outflow of funds could have been coordinated by a member of the inner circle of the exchange’s founder Sam Bankman-Fried, pointing out that this is indicated by the simultaneous and sophisticated hacking of FTX and FTX US.
Learn more about how to protect your data in the online space here.
