Rising Cyberattacks: Upbit Targeted in 159,000 Hacking Attempts

<p>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. </p><p>Security Measures Reinforced:
Upbit's Response to Hacking Attempts</p><p>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.</p><p>The
data shows a staggering surge of 117% in hacking attempts when compared to the
same period in 2022, and an even more startling increase of 1,800% from the first
half of 2020.</p><p>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.</p><p>Although
Upbit was exploited to the extent of $50 million 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."</p><p>However,
in a recent incident, <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/upbit/">Upbit</a>
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.</p><blockquote><p lang="en" dir="ltr">During the first half of 2023, leading South Korean crypto exchange Upbit witnessed more than 159,000 hacking incidents.</p>— TheCryptoBasic (@thecryptobasic) <a href="https://twitter.com/thecryptobasic/status/1711273643232186369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 9, 2023</a></blockquote><p>Calls for Strengthened
Security: South Korean Representative's Appeal</p><p>Acknowledging
the rising trend of <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/cryptocurrency/">cryptocurrency</a>
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.</p><p>Seong-jung
highlighted: "The Ministry of Science and Technology must conduct
large-scale whitewashing mock tests and investigate information security
conditions in preparation for cyber attacks against virtual asset exchanges
where hacking attempts are frequent." </p><p>He
further pointed out that the role of the Ministry of Science and ICT in
managing and supervising these exchanges remains somewhat ambiguous.</p><p>The
cryptocurrency exchange sector witnessed a series of attacks in September. Hong
Kong-based exchange <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/tag/coinex/">CoinEx</a>
experienced a $70 million breach due to a compromised private key. CoinEx
assured affected users that they would be compensated for any lost funds. </p><p>Huobi
Global's <a href="https://www.financemagnates.com/cryptocurrency/huobi-globals-htx-hit-by-79-million-crypto-heist-offers-hacker-white-hat-deal/">HTX
exchange fell victim to a $7.9 million</a> exploit on September 24. These
incidents underline the pressing need for enhanced security measures in the
industry.</p>

This article was written by Tareq Sikder at www.financemagnates.com.