Hacker steals over $ 1 million from cryptocurrency startup

Security experts at PeckShield have reported an attack on the Omni lending protocol — the hacker managed to steal funds worth more than 1300 ETH (about $ 1.48 million).

As it became known, the hacker carried out the attack due to a platform vulnerability. The cryptocurrency startup Omni provides loans in digital currency, taking NFTs as collateral. The hacker used a cryptocurrency loan (obtained as collateral for non-fungible tokens from the Doodles collection) to purchase more NFTs and withdrew them without returning the loan funds. Experts emphasized that the attacker immediately transferred the stolen funds to the Tornado Cash mixing service.

«We have suspended the Omni protocol until we complete the investigation and double-check everything with the help of external security and audit firms,» the developers said, emphasizing that the protocol is in beta testing, so the attack did not affect users' funds.

It is not yet known who will be looking for the hacker and whether they plan to investigate the case at all. As we know from previous cases of crypto theft, attackers usually remain anonymous. Perhaps it is «impunity» that has become one of the reasons for the increase in the number of attacks on digital assets — the number of thefts has doubled over the past three months. In April, May, and June, hackers attacked cryptocurrency platforms 50 times. As a result, they managed to steal more than $ 670 million. Most of the names of the hackers are unknown, but «traces often lead» to the North Korean group Lazarus Group. According to Elliptic Connect analysts, this hacker group is involved in many crypto thefts. Among them is an attack on the Horizon Bridge of the Harmony blockchain, which resulted in the theft of $ 100 million.