Arkham exposes a massive Bitcoin theft from LuBian worth 3.5 billion dollars in 2020, now valued at 14.5 billion.
Arkham Intelligence has uncovered one of the largest Bitcoin thefts in history. The blockchain data firm revealed that 127,426 Bitcoins were stolen from a Chinese mining pool called LuBian in December 2020. At that time, these stolen coins were to approximately 3.5 billion dollars. The total value has now skyrocketed to 14.5 billion dollars because of the increase in the value of Bitcoin.
Arkham Uncovers Silent Crypto Heist at LuBian Pool
LuBian was a mining pool that had plants in China and Iran. It did not publicize the hack. The hacker did not talk about it either. It is Arkham who reports the theft. This is how such big crimes in the crypto world can be silent and hidden.
The case, as investigators in Arkham found out, involved the theft because of a critical security issue. LuBian had a poor way of creating the private keys. These are the keys to the Bitcoin wallets, which are similar to passwords. This technique could easily be broken by brute force. This implies that the hacker would have made numerous attempts before the correct combination opened the wallet.
The hacker has stolen a massive volume of Bitcoin and did not touch the wallet. Since 2020, no money has been transferred. The hacker has not been vocal as well. Yet, Binance, which is the largest crypto exchange in the world, deposited some small test transactions to the wallet in September 2024. What this might imply is that other people are monitoring the address of the hacker.
The LuBian case has now been regarded as the largest stolen case of Bitcoin. It is bigger than other well-known hacks, like the ByBit hack or the Mt. Gox incident. The hacker has become the owner of the 13th-largest Bitcoin wallet worldwide.
Faulty Key Algorithm Caused LuBian’s Massive Loss
After the theft, LuBian sent a message to the hacker using the blockchain. The message said, “To the whitehat who is saving our asset, you can contact us.” The company also issued a reward. However, the hacker never got back. The coins have not been used even in the purse.
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The robbery shows that even big and well-known crypto companies can suffer if they use weak security. As a result, strong protection is important for all. The error of LuBian was making use of a faulty algorithm to generate personal keys. This made them lose billions of dollars. It is an eye-opener that all companies should employ strong and secure means of safeguarding digital assets.
What the incident reminds users and companies is that they have to be more cautious. Users may not realize it, but there is a fault in the world of crypto, as it can cost them a fortune. Experts report that good generation of the private key, multi-layering, and frequent auditing are required.
The report issued by Arkham has resulted in panic in the crypto community. Many corporate entities are looking at their own handling of security. The risks are proportional to the increasing value of the digital assets. This is not a mere crime story but a sort of wake up call.
