Massive Cryptocurrency Hack- Bitcoin Loses Value

Last weekend has been marked with one of the craziest drops in cryptocurrency price that South Korea has had in the past few years. The cryptocurrency price drop is coming as an aftermath of a massive hack that hit Conrail, South Korean Cryptocurrency exchange during the weekend.

As was expected, security fears have continued to increase, with people skeptical of further attacks on other platforms.

In a recent tweet, Conrail confirmed the incident, stating that the attack has left a big hole in the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Bitcoin Drops Massively

Bitcoin was the worst hit by the aftermath price drop, losing a massive $500 in an hour to sale at $6,627 on the Luxembourg exchange Bitstam, while other cryptocurrencies had their own fair share of losses.

The scam report has further shown the need for tightened security in the global cryptocurrency market.

In a different statement by Coinrail, the company published the loss that it had from the experience, claiming that a massive 30% of coins were affected by the unfortunate incidence that it termed as “cyber intrusion”. Although no figure has been placed yet on the loss, Yonhap news agency has pointed it to be up to about 40bn Won (£27.8).

Relevant authorities are already on top of the situation, with the Korean police launching series of investigations, especially into the history of Coinrail servers.

The incidence has further contributed to the fluctuation of Bitcoin, dropping to about $6,750 on Monday afternoon. This decline in the price of Bitcoin is a sharp contrast from the rapid rise that saw the currency reach a record $20,000 in December.

Highest Heist

The weekend’s incidence is the peak of the series of cryptocurrency thefts that the last few months have been characterized by. Japan’s Coincheck had its own share of hack when in January, it lost more than $500m worth of cryptocurrency. South Korean exchange, Youbit made the news for the wrong reason in December when it filed for bankruptcy after it suffered two significant hacks.

In a recent interview with Naeem Aslam, he has urged regulators to step up their games to protect consumers, since these high profile hacks have almost turned into a bimonthly problem.

The Wall Street Journal (£) in their Friday’s report, suggested that US regulators have launched an investigation into potential price manipulation at four different cryptocurrency platforms.

Analysts are beginning to suggest that the volatility that Bitcoin enjoyed in mid-November and mid-December is gradually fading away, with the hype that turned it from being an IT interest into a mainstream now gone.