Cold Wallet Crisis: $3.05M XRP Heist Unraveled by Blockchain Sleuth ZachXBT
Another day, another crypto theft—but this time the digital breadcrumbs lead straight to a chilling revelation about cold storage vulnerabilities.
The Great XRP Drain
Hackers just pulled off a $3.05 million digital heist from what was supposed to be the Fort Knox of cryptocurrency storage. While traditional finance types clutch their pearls about crypto volatility, it's the straight-up theft that should keep investors awake at night.
Blockchain Detective Strikes Again
ZachXBT, the crypto world's equivalent of Sherlock Holmes with a keyboard, has already traced the stolen funds through the blockchain's transparent ledger. The digital trail doesn't lie—even when the perpetrators do.
Cold Storage Myth Busted
Remember when they told you cold wallets were the ultimate security solution? So much for that theory. This breach proves even the most secure storage methods can't withstand determined hackers—or maybe just can't withstand human error during setup.
Another reminder that in crypto, you're either your own bank security guard or you're paying someone else to potentially fail at the job. At least the transparency of blockchain means we can all watch the thieves enjoy their ill-gotten gains in real-time.
How hackers laundered $3.05 in XRP
Following the breach, hackers used the cross-chain bridge Bridgers to swap the XRP into TRON (TRX) in over 120 transactions. The transactions appeared to go to Binance, but this was actually part of Bridgers’ liquidity path.
After the laundering steps, the attackers moved all tokens into a single Tron wallet, making it easier to MOVE the funds off-chain. For that purpose, they used OTC desks adjacent to Huione, a Southeast Asia–based illicit online marketplace.
According to ZachXBT, Huione has connections to hacks, pig-butchering scams, money laundering, and more. The exchange has also been sanctioned by the U.S. government for facilitating massive illicit crypto flows.
