In a shocking event in the DeFi world, users and analysts of the platform Poly Network found out that an attacker stole $610 million worth of cryptocurrencies from the DeFi platform. Interestingly, soon after establishing contact with the anonymous hacker, the stolen cryptos were returned to the network.
Poly Network is a cryptocurrency platform that aims to make the Decentralized Finance environment more effective by combining multiple blockchain networks. The platform confirmed that the $610 million worth of cryptocurrencies stealing was the biggest hack ever in the history of Decentralized Finance. The hacker was asked to contact Poly Network and work out a solution. What followed in the past week was nothing short of unexpected.
Theft, Contact, Return: How Events Unfolded
In the unfolding of events, the hacker, who stays anonymous, returned almost all the stolen money, which was confirmed by Poly Network. It is worth noting that the hacker turned down a reward of $500,000, which Poly Network had offered after the hacker agreed to return the amount. However, they seem to have taken up the immunity reward since Poly Network has not mentioned anything about legal actions.
Quite notably, though, Poly Network said that the hacker would face law enforcement charges from almost every country if they try to move or cash out the cryptocurrency. More importantly, the DeFi platform had worked with a few organizations to ensure that much of the stolen cryptocurrencies were frozen. As a result, it put the hacker in a situation of not being able to launder/cash in the amount. Upon further research, Poly Network and other security entities found that the attack was likely to be predetermined.
Surprisingly, however, the hacker had not taken precautions to hide his identity during the attack. As a result, the security team could track the attacker’s IP address and device fingerprints. After all, the hacker seemed to have been telling the truth when they said the hack was “for just fun.” The hacker also added that he stole the cryptocurrencies to keep them safe from the vulnerabilities on Poly Network. In the end, the hacker was attempting to pose as a white-hat hacker, adding that they do not do evil.
The Potential Aftermath
It is not clear whether Poly Network is convinced with this reason, and it is not yet known if legal action is being taken. However, it seems likely since the hackers have returned most of the stolen money. As soon as the hackers agreed to transfer the amount, Poly Network provided the wallet IDs to which the subsequent deposits were supposed to be made. According to reports, the hackers have complied with the same. Even though the company did not mention them, the negotiating tactics from Poly Network seem to have worked.
The incident has also shown how the DeFi community came together to protect the crypto resources of those who believed in the infrastructure. So, even though the number of DeFi-based attacks is increasing, the open-to-all platform is preparing itself for the worst-case scenarios.
