$600 million stolen by hackers in a major crypto heist

After their computers were breached by cybercriminals in one of the largest crypto attacks of all time, a major technology company had more than $600 million stolen.

A gang of cybercriminals targeted Sky Mavis, the creator of the play-to-earn game Axie Infinity, early last week. The breach, however, was only discovered on Tuesday.

The Ronin Bridge program, which allows tokens from one network to be converted to tokens from another, is supported by the blockchain network. Scammers stole 173,600 ether and 25.5 million USDC in two transactions, according to Ronin Bridge.

"We are working with law enforcement, forensic cryptographers, and our investors to make sure that all funds are recovered or reimbursed," Ronin Bridge said in a tweet.

"The fact that nobody notices for six days scream aloud that some structure should be the place to watch illicit transfers," Wilfred Day, CEO of asset management firm Securitize Capital, told Bloomberg.

According to Chainalysis, a blockchain research firm, DeFi platforms were hacked for $2.3 billion (€2 billion) in 2021, up 1,330 percent from the previous year.

The price of Ron, a token used on the Ronin blockchain, dropped by 22% after the hack was revealed. AXS, a token used in Axie Infinity, dropped as much as 11 percent before recovering some of its losses, according to CoinMarketCap.

Ronin Bridge said in a statement that it is in contact with major cryptocurrency exchanges and Chainalysis to track the stolen funds' movements. The Ronin hack comes after a $300 million (€269 million) attack on the Wormhole bridge in February.

By fLEXI tEAM