This famous hacker has accumulated 51,000 ETH mainly by guessing weak private security from 2016 to 2018.
Blockchain Bandit, a notorious hacker, has stolen 51,000 Ether mainly by guessing weak private keys, and has just consolidated these assets into a single wallet after nearly two years of inactivity.
The entire 51,000 ETH has been transferred from 10 wallet addresses to a Multisignature wallet with the address "0xC45…1D542," according to blockchain investigator ZachXBT in a post on Telegram on December 30.
These funds were transferred in batches, mostly 5,000 Ether, from 8:54 PM to 9:18 PM UTC on December 30.
Previously, the stolen funds remained dormant in 10 wallets since January 21, 2023, the last time the 51,000 Ether were moved. During that time, the hacker also transferred 470 Bitcoin.
Blockchain Bandit has accumulated nearly 45,000 Ether by successfully guessing poorly secured private keys.
While guessing private keys is considered nearly impossible, this hacker found 732 private keys associated with 49,060 transactions.
The hacker used brute force searches to probe random private keys through a combination of code flaws and faulty random number generators, in a process called "Ethercombing," according to cryptocurrency security analyst Adrian Bednarek at the time.
This hacker has been carrying out "programmatic thefts" since 2016, with the largest incidents occurring in 2018, according to ZachXBT.
While the identity of Blockchain Bandit remains undisclosed, Bednarek previously suggested that a state-sponsored organization like North Korea could be behind these thefts.
According to a report shared by on-chain security firm Cyvers, cryptocurrency hackers stole over $2.3 billion in assets across 165 major incidents in 2024, a 40% increase from 2023.
This 40% increase was mainly due to a rise in access control breaches, particularly on centralized exchanges and custodial platforms.
Access control vulnerabilities accounted for 81%, or $1.9 billion, of the value stolen in 2024 across 67 cybersecurity incidents.
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The article Hacker moves 172 million USD ETH after 2 years of inactivity first appeared on CoinMoi.
