South
Korea’s cryptocurrency exchange, Upbit, has been subjected to an astonishing
159,000 hacking attempts during the first half of 2023. It marks a significant
rise in cyberattacks compared to previous years.
The
concerning figures were disclosed by Dunamu, the firm that owns and operates Upbit.
The figures were presented to South Korean Representative Park Seong-jung of
the People Power Party. This alarming development was reported by the South Korean
news agency Yonhap.
The
data shows a staggering 117% surge in hacking attempts when compared to the
same period in 2022, and an even more startling 1,800% increase from the first
half of 2020.
To
combat the relentless onslaught of hacking attempts and fortify its security
measures, Dunamu revealed that Upbit has strengthened the proportion of funds
held in cold wallets to 70%. The exchange has heightened security protocols for
funds stored in hot wallets.
Hot
wallets, given their online storage of private keys, are more susceptible to
breaches compared to cold wallets, where keys are offline on external devices
like hard drives and USBs.
Although
Upbit was the target of a $50 million exploit in 2019, the exchange has managed
to maintain an impressive security record since then. A spokesperson from
Dunamu stated: “After the hacking incident in 2019, we took various
measures to prevent recurrence, such as distributing hot wallets and operating
them, and to date, not a single cyber breach has occurred.”
However,
in a recent incident, Upbit
temporarily suspended its Aptos token services in late September due to its
failure to recognize a counterfeit token known as ‘ClaimAPTGift.com.’ It had reached around 400,000 Aptos tokens.
During the first half of 2023, leading South Korean crypto exchange Upbit witnessed more than 159,000 hacking incidents.
— TheCryptoBasic (@thecryptobasic) October 9, 2023
Calls for Strengthened
Security: South Korean Representative’s Appeal
Acknowledging
the rising trend of cryptocurrency
hacks across the industry, Representative Seong-jung has called on the South
Korean government to take more robust action.
Seong-jung
emphasized the need for the Ministry of Science and Technology to conduct
comprehensive security tests and assess information security conditions to
bolster defenses against cyberattacks targeting virtual asset exchanges, which
are increasingly becoming the focal point of malicious activities.
Seong-jung
highlighted: “The Ministry of Science and…
