Axie Infinity co-founder hacked and 3,248 ETH stolen details

Last night, the co-founder of Axie Infinity suffered a hacker attack, and a large amount of ETH was withdrawn from the wallet and sent to Tornado Cash. The suspicious activity was revealed by a blockchain investigator who raised the alarm about a compromised whale wallet on Ronin Bridge.

Nearly $10 million stolen

Web3 security platform Ancilia was the first to report the alleged security vulnerability in Ronin Bridge. At that time, 2,790 ETH had been withdrawn and deposited into Tornado Cash. Ancilia was the first to report a security vulnerability in Ronin Bridge. At that time, 2,790 ETH had been withdrawn and deposited into Tornado Cash.

Aleksander Larsen, one of the co-founders of Sky Mavis, Axie Infinity and Ronin Network Aleksander Larsen, one of the co-founders of Sky Mavis, Axie Infinity and Ronin Network, clarified that neither the Ronin bridge nor the chain was compromised.

Axie Infinity COO said that it was not so much that the bridge suffered a security breach, but that the wallet was stolen and the funds were cashed out with Tornado Cash.

As Larsen points out, the funds stolen during most exploits are sent to cryptocurrency mixers to "obfuscate" their transaction history and make tracking more difficult. While these tools are often used by hackers, they are created and encouraged to protect user privacy.

Tornado Cash has come under widespread scrutiny from U.S. regulators over the past few years. The hybrid service was sanctioned and blacklisted for allegedly failing to "implement effective controls."

Larsen assured the community that the Ronin Bridge has the “highest security” and that it has passed multiple audits. Additionally, it pauses when suspiciously large amounts of funds are withdrawn to prevent large-scale attacks.

Subsequently, blockchain investigator PeckShield responded to the co-founder of Sky Mavis, pointing out that the whale wallet was stolen, and currently 3,248 ETH (worth approximately $9.7 million) was stolen.

The robbery included more than a dozen transactions involving three different wallets. As the investigators' post shows, some funds were moved between criminal wallets before being deposited into Tornado Cash, which complicates tracking.

Axie Infinity co-founder’s personal address hacked

Some X users expressed skepticism about Larsen's post, as they pointed out that although the bridge was not compromised, the hacked wallet appeared to be under the control of the Ronin network team.

Jeff ‘Jihoz’ Zirlin, one of the co-founders of Axie Infinity, announced on X (formerly Twitter) that the compromised wallets were two of his addresses and, therefore, they are not related to the Ronin chain. The co-founder of Axie Infinity announced on X (formerly Twitter) that the stolen wallets were two of his addresses and therefore not related to the Ronin chain.

Zirlin noted that the breach occurred due to a "key leak" and had nothing to do with the operations of Sky Mavis, the company that created Axie Infinity. He also explained that the hack did not affect the verification or operations of the Ronin chain.

The co-founder of Axie Infinity responded to Larsen’s affirmation of the chain’s security. Zirlin assures that strict security measures will be implemented in all chain-related activities. Notably, the price of AXS does not appear to be affected by the exploit news.

In the post, Zirlin took the opportunity to express his gratitude to those who have reached out to him during difficult times. It promises to "continue moving forward with everyone on this amazing journey," starting with gamers and bringing "economic freedom to all Internet users."

Last month, hackers targeted key figures in the blockchain and crypto space. A similar situation happened on January 31st when Ripple hit the headlines. First, Ripple hackers allegedly stole over 213 million XRP worth $112.5 million, X reported, which temporarily had a negative impact on the token’s price.

It was later revealed that unauthorized fund withdrawals had occurred from the personal address of Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen. It is worth noting that some of the stolen funds were subsequently tracked and recovered by the Binance team. #AxieInfinity #黑客攻击