In a concerning development, two crypto wallet addresses belonging to Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin, one of the co-founders of Axie Infinity and the Ronin Network, fell victim to a sophisticated hacking incident. The breach resulted in the unauthorized transfer of approximately $9.7 million worth of Ether across Tornado Cash.
Blockchain investigator PeckShield raised the alarm on February 23 regarding a significant compromise involving a “whale wallet” over the Ronin Bridge. The hacker managed to abscond with 3,248 ETH, prompting immediate attention from Aleksander Larsen, co-founder of the Ronin Network. Larsen swiftly defended the security integrity of the Ronin Bridge, suggesting instead that the breach likely stemmed from a wallet compromise.
Confirming Larsen’s suspicions, Zirlin acknowledged that two of his personal wallets had indeed been compromised. However, he was quick to clarify that the breach was not attributable to vulnerabilities within the Ronin chain or Sky Mavis operations. Assuring stakeholders, Zirlin emphasized the presence of stringent security measures governing all chain-related activities.
According to PeckShield, the root cause of the breach appeared to be a wallet compromise, enabling unauthorized outbound transfers of funds. While specifics regarding the breach’s execution remain undisclosed, Zirlin’s statement implies that the compromise likely involved leaked private keys, granting unauthorized access to his personal crypto wallets.
PeckShield’s subsequent investigation revealed that the pilfered 3,248 ETH was initially divided and distributed across three different wallets. Subsequently, the illicitly obtained funds were laundered through Tornado Cash, a popular service utilized by hackers to obfuscate the ownership and traceability of illicitly acquired funds.
The incident draws parallels to previous high-profile hacking incidents within the crypto sphere. Notably, Binance recently intervened to freeze $4.2 million worth of stolen XRP linked to a $112-million hack targeting Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen’s personal wallet. Unlike the Jihoz hacker associated with Axie Infinity, the perpetrator in Larsen’s case refrained from leveraging crypto mixer services or decentralized exchanges to conceal their identity. Consequently, Binance was able to track and block access to a portion of the pilfered funds.
The hacking of Zirlin’s crypto wallets underscores the persistent cybersecurity challenges faced by prominent figures within the crypto space, highlighting the critical importance of robust security measures and heightened vigilance in safeguarding digital assets against malicious actors.
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