Hack forces Cryptopia exchange offline with mounting losses

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New Zealand-based crypto exchange Cryptopia has become the latest high profile hack victim, following an attack on the service identified on Tuesday (Jan. 15). The exchange was switched to maintenance mode when the attack was uncovered, leaving customers unable to use their accounts in the usual way.

The scale of the attack remains unclear for the time being, though there is the suggestion that as many as 19,931 ETH and 48 million Centrality (CENNZ) tokens could have been moved from the exchange, totaling in the region of US$3.65 million.

The website is currently completely offline, with visitors presented with the news, “Cryptopia is currently in unscheduled maintenance mode. We will be back soon.”

In a message explaining the situation to customers posted on Twitter, Cryptopia said the exchange would remain in lockdown until the matter has been resolved.

It explained, “Yesterday…the Cryptopia Exchange suffered a security breach which resulted in significant losses. Once identified by staff, the exchange was put into maintenance mode while we assessed damages. Staff the notified and involved the appropriate Government Agencies, including NZ Police and High Tech Crimes Unit who are jointly and actively investigating the matter as a major crime and they are assisting us with advice.”

“Until this has been carried out, The Cryptopia Exchange will remain in maintenance mode, with trading suspended. We are committed to getting this resolved as quickly as possible and will keep you all updated every step of the way,” the exchange added.

https://twitter.com/Cryptopia_NZ/status/1085289394649460736

The exchange becomes only the latest victim of a major hack, continuing the trend that has seen countless exchanges of all sizes lose millions to these attacks.

With the security of crypto exchanges still under scrutiny, both from regulators and investors worldwide, the Cryptopia hack is the latest blow to trust in the sector.

For the time being, customers with deposits held at Cryptopia are unable to access their cryptocurrency, while those who may have been directly affected by the hack remain in the dark.

As the aftermath of the attack continues to unfold, questions will need to be answered on how Cryptopia was breached, and whether more could and should have been done to protect against these threats.