Cyberattack on Solana: millions in cryptocurrency captured

There has been another widespread hacker attack on a crypto platform. The criminals are said to have scammed wallets from the cryptocurrency “Solana” with a total value in the millions. How the large-scale cyberattack was possible is still unknown to investigators.

Cryptofans with Solana are at risk

Cryptocurrencies are not exactly having an easy time of it at the moment. After the gigantic boom of the last few years, digital currencies are now steadily declining in value. For example, as recently as June, the price of what is probably the best-known cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, fell below the $20,000 mark again for a long time. Behind this is not only the fact that cryptocurrencies are generally considered a rather unsafe investment. After all, they sometimes show significant fluctuations in their value. On top of that, the digital form of cryptocurrencies always carries a risk of falling victim to cyberattacks. Here, the perpetrators no longer have to break into large credit houses to capture a lot of money.

Meanwhile, millions can also be raked in by launching sophisticated hacker attacks on crypto platforms. For example, crypto funds worth $80 million were stolen from Qubit Finance earlier this year. And now the next major hack has been announced, in which crypto funds are in focus. So, on Tuesday, August 02, 2022, wallets of the cryptocurrency Solana were looted. However, it seems that the attack is not over yet. According to the investigating authorities, the cybercriminals manage to fool the system into thinking they are ordinary customers. A security hole that serves as a gateway for this has not yet been found, they said.

Phantom and Slope are affected

In particular, owners of Solana, which use the platforms Phantom and Slope for the management of their wallet, should now exercise caution. But on top of that, there are also said to have been isolated cases among users of Trust Wallet and Solflare. So far, it is assumed that thousands of wallets have already been completely emptied. The Solana contained therein is said to be worth millions. Naturally, the developers of Solana are also horrified by the incident. After all, the theft is likely to drag the already battered share price down even further. However, they themselves emphasize that their own Solana system had nothing to do with the cyberattack. The loophole must therefore be in one of the wallets. Currently, several companies and developers are probably working on finding the problem.

Affected people with Solana can help with clarification

To keep the impact as low as possible, the affected companies are now also dependent on the cooperation of their users. For example, they should fill out an online questionnaire if possible to work out possible causes. They were also asked to stop using their wallets for the time being. After all, any login could exacerbate the problem. This request is directed to the total of 7767 hacked wallets that Solana assumed on Wednesday, August 03, 2022. By now, it is likely to be an even higher number, which also means that the loot may have jumped from the originally communicated $4.5 million to a higher sum.

Cause research is in full swing

Now, of course, the question arises as to how the extensive attack could have occurred. For this, the responsible security companies must first of all find out what led to the compromise of the wallets. In the meantime, it is assumed that this was a classic phishing attack, with the help of which the attackers were able to obtain access data. It is clear that Solana should solve the problem as soon as possible. Otherwise, the share price threatens to fall even further. Shortly after the cyber attack, the currency suffered a drop of three percent. In general, it will be exciting to see how the prices of cryptocurrencies will develop in the coming months and years. After all, more and more “classic” credit institutions are also entering the business. For example, Volksbank Bayern Mitte inaugurated its first ATM for cryptocurrency only in July.