Hackers Strike Axie Infinity: Co-Founder’s 3,248-ETH Wallet Drained of 9.7M Dollars

Crypto News- In a startling turn of events, Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin, renowned as one of the brains behind Axie Infinity and the Ronin Network, fell victim to a malicious attack on his crypto wallets. Reports confirm that approximately $9.7 million worth of Ether (ETH) was illicitly siphoned off through two of Zirlin’s personal wallet addresses.

Hackers Strike Axie Infinity: Co-Founder’s 3,248-ETH Wallet Drained of 9.7M Dollars

The breach, discovered by blockchain investigator PeckShield, revealed a sophisticated operation where the hacker utilized Tornado Cash to obscure their tracks. Despite initial suspicions surrounding the Ronin Bridge’s security, co-founder Aleksander Larsen swiftly dismissed any flaws in their system, indicating that the breach stemmed from a wallet vulnerability.

Zirlin himself confirmed the hack, assuring the community that the Ronin chain and Sky Mavis operations remained intact, with stringent security protocols in place. However, the incident underscores the inherent risks associated with crypto holdings, as even well-guarded wallets can fall prey to determined attackers.

Axie Infinity Co-Founder’s 9.7M Dollars ETH Nightmare: Inside the Sophisticated Wallet Hack

PeckShield’s investigation unraveled the extent of the breach, tracing the stolen funds across multiple wallets before culminating in Tornado Cash, a favored tool for anonymizing ill-gotten gains. This echoes a broader trend in the crypto space, where hackers increasingly leverage decentralized services to obfuscate their activities.

Interestingly, this incident stands in stark contrast to a recent hack involving Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen, where Binance managed to freeze a significant portion of the stolen funds. Unlike Jihoz’s hacker, Larsen’s perpetrator did not employ crypto mixer services or decentralized exchanges, facilitating Binance’s intervention.

The episode serves as a stark reminder of the importance of robust security measures in safeguarding digital assets and highlights the ongoing cat-and-mouse game between hackers and crypto platforms.