Lazarus Group, linked to North Korea, conducted a significant attack on the Bybit cryptocurrency exchange. In response, Bybit announced a substantial bounty for assistance in recovering stolen funds.
The Hack and Bybit's Response
On February 22, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou announced plans to use all available means to recover the stolen funds, including a bounty program for white hat hackers, cooperation with law enforcement, and discussions with the Ethereum Foundation to explore possible solutions.
History and Precedents of Blockchain Rollback
During a discussion, Bybit's CEO was asked about his support for rolling back the Ethereum blockchain to invalidate the stolen funds. He responded: "I'm not sure if it's one man's decision. Maybe it should be a voting process to see what the communities want." Previously, in 2016, a rollback following the DAO hack resulted in the split of Ethereum into Ethereum Classic and the main Ethereum network.
Additional Security Measures and Industry Support
The Lazarus Group has been moving the stolen funds between wallets to obfuscate their origin. Bybit has offered a 10% bounty to aid in fund recovery, while Tether and Bitget have taken steps to freeze and block transactions related to the group. The Bybit CEO expressed deep gratitude for the industry's support.
The Bybit incident highlights the importance of collective efforts and community support in addressing security threats in the crypto industry. The exchange continues to work actively on recovering the stolen funds and strengthening the sector.
