Crypto platform Binance confirms 'complex' $6.3 bn hack

Cryptocurrency platform Binance said Friday it was working to resolve a "complex attack" that affected around $6.3 billion in funds, in what is thought to be the biggest ever crypto heist.

The company -- the world's largest crypto exchange by daily trading volumes -- said investigations had "uncovered additional points of breach," contrary to initial findings that suggested the hack involved a single compromised laptop.

"This was a complex attack, and we are doing all we can in coordination with law enforcement to resolve it," Binance wrote on X.

Blockchain investigation firm TRM Labs said it had "high confidence" that the attack was orchestrated by a group of hackers affiliated with North Korea called TraderTraitor.

"Several features of this attack match earlier North Korea-linked heists," TRM said.

TraderTraitor is believed to be part of Lazarus Group -- which gained notoriety in 2014 when it was accused of hacking into Sony Pictures as revenge for "The Interview," a film that mocked North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Binance confirmed on its X account for Latin America that "the total estimated impact is around $6.3 billion."

That is four times the amount impacted in the biggest-ever cyberattack of its kind to date: $1.5 billion taken in February last year from the Bybit platform.

That heist was attributed at the time to North Korea-backed TraderTraitor.

Binance warned the $6.3 billion figure "may continue to increase as our teams work closely with law enforcement, issuers, blockchain intelligence firms and industry partners to trace and freeze additional assets."

It said around $3 billion in affected assets had been frozen.

Binance earlier posted a series of sometimes contradictory messages, insisting that "user funds are completely safe" but also saying it would "cover all losses.

AFP