Mixin Network suffered a $200M hack in the early hours of September 23, 2023, Hong Kong time, according to the decentralized network recognized for its distinctive feature of zero network fees. The network, which revealed the distressing incident, involved a major breach in the security of its esteemed cloud service provider.
This breach was a direct result of a deliberate and calculated attack by hackers who specifically targeted the network’s database. Tragically, this malicious act resulted in a substantial loss of assets on the network’s mainnet, causing deep concern and raising questions about the overall security of the system.
Mixin Network has responded swiftly to the breach by engaging the services of Google and blockchain security firm SlowMist to conduct a comprehensive investigation. Initial evaluations suggest that the attack resulted in a loss of approximately US$200 million.
To ensure the safety of its users following the $200M hack, Mixin Network has temporarily halted its deposit and withdrawal services. These services will be resumed once the vulnerabilities have been identified and effectively addressed, with unanimous agreement from all network nodes. According to Mixin Network, transfers within the network continue to operate without any impact during this time.
Regarding the recovery of lost assets, the Mixin team is actively working on formulating a solution. More details will be announced in due course according to the company. Furthermore, to address the incident, Mixin Network founder, Feng Xiaodong, will be hosting a public Mandarin livestream scheduled for 13:00 HKT on September 25, 2023. For the convenience of non-Mandarin speakers, English translations of the live stream content will be provided, ensuring easy reference.
According to the Mixin Network team, this incident is deeply regretted and they want to assure the community that they are committed to minimizing losses. But this is just one of many recent cyber attacks resulting in substantial loss of funds in recent times.
Weeks ago, cryptocurrency exchange CoinEx was hit with a cyber attack linked to the notorious North Korean hacker group, Lazarus Group which resulted in the loss of funds worth over $50 million. Online platform Stake was also a victim of an attack which caused it to lose $41 million.
The growing attack on decentralized platforms has become worrisome. In August, Optimism-based protocol Exactly was exploited resulting in the loss of $7 million. Within the same period, Rocketswap also fell victim to a hack. In early August, Leetswap suffered a loss of 340 ETH. Besides Mixin Network, one of the recent ones was Linear Finance which resulted in draining all liquidity on two key DEXs.
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