Penpie Hacker Steals $27M in DeFi Exploit, Receives Praise from Fellow Criminal
The hacker behind the Penpie $27 million crypto theft has reportedly received an appreciation message from another criminal.
The decentralized finance protocol Penpie fell victim to a significant exploit, leading to a loss of $27 million in digital assets. This breach sent shockwaves through the platform's community and ecosystem, with the protocol halting activities to curb further losses.
Penpie Halts Operations After $7 Million Hack; Funds Laundered Through Tornado CashIn response to the recent attack, Penpie swiftly halted all deposits and withdrawals on its platform to prevent further losses.
However, the hacker quickly transferred $7 million in crypto assets to Tornado Cash. Tornado Cash is a service that can hide the origins of crypto transactions, making it harder for authorities to trace the stolen funds.
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A crypto mixer like Tornado Cash combines a user's digital assets with many other transactions. This aims to obscure the origin and destination of the funds, providing enhanced privacy.
While intended for legitimate purposes like protecting user privacy, hackers frequently exploit this service to move the proceeds of their criminal activities.
In the aftermath of the Penpie hack, another hacker reached out directly to the Penpie hacker via an on-chain message. This hacker was responsible for the Euler Finance hack in March 2023 and stole $195 million through a flash loan.
This type of communication, embedded into the blockchain, is often used in decentralized (DeFi) ecosystems for transparency. However, cybercriminalsalso use it to convey messages between themselves.
The Euler Finance hacker expressed his admiration for the Penpie hacker's boldness and refusal to return any stolen crypto assets.
Hacker Surrenders After Euler Finance OfferThe Euler hacker wrote, Good job, bro. I haven't seen a hack like this for a while. I'm happy you kept all the money and didn't let these bastards get back one dollar of what you took. You won; they lost. Good job."
Despite their impressive heist, the Euler Finance hacker did not achieve the same outcome as the Penpie exploiter. Following the massive flash loan attack on Euler Finance on March 15, 2023, the lending protocol addressed the situation.
The protocol sent an on-chain message to the hacker, proposing a compromise to resolve the theft. In this Message, Euler Finance offered the hacker an opportunity to keep approximately $20 million of the stolen funds.
Look over your shoulder for the rest of your life, or take a $20m deal. No brainer.
Although, they could easily be state actors and aren't really worried about low levels feds. https://t.co/i5zUSDqFca
- drnick (@DrNickA) March 15, 2023
However, the hacker must According to Cardano Whale, a respected community figure, ADA surged 217% from September 2023 to March 2024 that had been illicitly obtained. In addition to this offer, the protocol issued a stern warning.
It announced a $1 million reward for anyone who could provide information leading to the perpetrator's arrest.
By April 4, 2023, the hacker had agreed to comply with the protocol's terms and returned 90% of the stolen funds, which helped Euler recover from the incident.
Subsequently, the Euler Foundation halted the $1 million reward campaign that had pressured the hacker to comply.
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