Major Bitcoin ATM Maker Hacked, Over $1.5 Million In BTC Stolen

Bitcoin ATM maker General Bytes has become the latest victim of a cyber attack, with the company announcing a loss of $1.5 million in digital assets.

The breach occurred Friday, and has dealt a heavy blow to one of the biggest producers of Bitcoin ATMs in the industry, boasting over 9,000 units to its name.

On March 17-18th, 2023, GENERAL BYTES experienced a security incident.

We released a statement urging customers to take immediate action to protect their personal information.

We urge all our customers to take immediate action to protect their funds and https://t.co/fajc61lcwR… https://t.co/g5FGqvqZQ7

— GENERAL BYTES (@generalbytes) March 18, 2023

Hot Wallets, Exchanges Breached

General Bytes has reported that the recent cyber attack resulted in the unauthorized access of funds from hot wallets and exchanges, theft of usernames and passwords, and disabling of two-factor authentication. 

Additionally, on-chain and Etherscan data show that the bitcoin attacker received approximately $1.5 million worth of BTC and moved nearly $40,000 in Ethereum through Uniswap DEX.

The breach impacted not only General Bytes’ cloud services, but also other operators’ standalone servers. The attacker utilized their Java application by uploading it remotely via the master service interface and running it with BATM user privileges. 

General Bytes has classified this breach as “highest” severity and stated that none of the audits conducted since 2021 were able to detect the vulnerability that led to the breach.

The Bitcoin hacker managed to get away with more than $1 million in BTC along with fragments of other digital assets.

Crypto Hacks Up In Spite Of Reinforcement Measures

As the popularity of cryptocurrencies continues to soar, so does the number of hacks and security breaches within the industry.

From high-profile attacks on major exchanges to individual investors losing their life savings, the implications of these rampant crypto hacks are far-reaching and potentially devastating.

In recent years, hackers have stolen billions of dollars worth of digital assets, leaving victims reeling and questioning the security of the entire crypto ecosystem.

Despite efforts to improve security measures and safeguard against attacks, the rise of DeFi and other decentralized systems has opened up new vulnerabilities and attack vectors.

The consequences of these attacks go beyond just financial loss, as they erode trust in the entire crypto industry and raise questions about the legitimacy of digital assets as a viable investment option. 

General Bytes has been no stranger to security breaches in recent times. Back in August 2022, the company was the victim of a hack that resulted in the theft of deposited Bitcoins at ATMs.

The attack saw hackers make off with around $16,000, prompting the company to take immediate action.

Following the latest breach, General Bytes has released a security fix and is urging users to implement it as soon as possible.

The company is advising users to upgrade their servers and to invalidate all passwords, API keys, and hot wallets.

This move is aimed at safeguarding against any future attacks and to ensure the security of users’ digital assets.

-Featured image from FullyCrypto