• HTX (formerly Huobi Global) was hacked for $8 million as a hacker stole 5,000 Ether (ETH).
• Justin Sun confirmed the hack today, noting the exchange offered the hacker a 5% “white hat bonus” to return the loot.

HTX (formerly Huobi Global) is the latest cryptocurrency exchange to fall victim to hackers after attackers stole $8 million worth of crypto. 

The incident was first highlighted by blockchain security and analytics platform Cyvers, which alerted the Huobi Global team to the attack involving 4,999 Ether (ETH) drained from one of the exchange’s hot wallets. 

🚨Red Code🚨Yesterday, our ML-powered system detected a suspicious transaction involving @HuobiGlobal and @HTX_Global.
Despite our attempts to reach out, we received no response. An EOA received 5K $ETH $7.9M from @HuobiGlobal‘s hot wallet.

🔍 This morning, we spotted… pic.twitter.com/3oqHhAVi8P

— 🚨 Cyvers Alerts 🚨 (@CyversAlerts) September 25, 2023

Justin Sun says user funds are SAFU

On Monday, Tron founder Justin Sun posted on X that indeed HTX had suffered the hacking incident. He pointed to a loss of 5,000 ETH worth $8 million, but added that the exchange had covered the losses in full. User funds were also reportedly safe, with platform operations normal.

HTX @HTX_Global has suffered a loss of 5,000 #Eth ($8 million USD) due to a hacker attack. HTX has fully covered the losses incurred from the attack and has successfully resolved all related issues. All user assets are #SAFU and the platform is operating completely normally.

— H.E. Justin Sun 孙宇晨 (@justinsuntron) September 25, 2023

The attack reportedly unfolded on September 24, with the total amount stolen from this attack on yet another exchange put at $7.9 million at the time. HTX immediately responded to Cyvers’ alert, taking swift action and notifying the public. An update included a message to the hacker that the HTX security team had “unmasked” the attacker’s identity.

Huobi offered a 5% “white hat bonus” to the attacker.

“We are willing to offer 5% of the stolen amount (400,000 USD) as a white hat reward to encourage the hacker to return the stolen funds. If the hacker returns the funds, we will also hire them as a security white hat advisor for HTX,” Sun wrote on X.

The exchange plans to involve law enforcement if the hacker fails to return the looted funds within seven days.

HTX’s breach comes a few weeks after the then Huobi Global team dismissed insolvency rumours and claims that its representatives had been detained in China. 

The hack also comes not long after crypto exchange CoinEx suffered a major breach that saw North Korea’s Lazarus Group steal $70 million. CoinEx had suspended deposits and withdrawals following the attack, only announcing a resumption last week.