Bitfinex’s Quick Response Halts $15B XRP Hack

The cryptocurrency world witnessed a near-catastrophic hack attempt, targeting $15 billion in XRP. This incident involving Bitfinex has sent shockwaves across the industry. The saga began when Whale Alert reported a massive movement of 25.6 billion XRP. 

This amount, shockingly, represents about half of XRP’s total circulating supply. The transaction was traced from an unknown wallet to Bitfinex, raising immediate suspicion among crypto enthusiasts.

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However, this alarming news was soon clarified. Paolo Ardoino, the CTO of Bitfinex and CEO of Tether, stepped forward on social media. He revealed this was not a routine transaction but an attempted “partial payments exploit” against the exchange.

Significantly, the attempted heist was thwarted. Ardoino credited their success to Bitfinex’s robust handling of the ‘delivered_amount’ data field. This technical safeguard was crucial in identifying and stopping the exploit. 

Moreover, the swift removal of the initial post by Whale Alert, citing issues with reading the Ripple node response, highlighted the rapid response and rectification measures within the crypto community.

This incident is a stark reminder of the persistent threats in the digital finance world. It underscores the importance of advanced security measures and constant vigilance in safeguarding assets in this evolving digital age.

Also Read: Bitfinex Cracks Down On UK Customers To comply With New Rules