Hacker Sent to Prison for Robbing Vietnamese Crypto Exchange
Authorities in Vietnam have caught and sentenced a hacker who stole money and data from a local cryptocurrency exchange. The man, who was arrested and charged for extorting the trading platform’s owner, has been ordered to return the money he misappropriated. Vietnamese Court Jails Hacker for Attacking Crypto Exchange Website
A resident of Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam has been given 10 years in prison for stealing 300 million Vietnamese dong (close to $13,000) from a crypto entrepreneur whose coin trading site he subjected to cyberattacks.
Nham Hoang Khang, the hacker, was charged with extortion and sentenced on Friday by the city’s People’s Court, the English-language edition of the VN Express daily reported. He was also ordered to return the stolen money.
The crypto exchange was established by Vu Ngoc Chau in 2018 to connect potential buyers and sellers of cryptocurrencies, taking a fee for the transactions it facilitated. Users were required to open accounts and provide personal information such as phone number, email address and a copy of an ID document.
In October 2020, Khang used his phone to create multiple accounts on the platform. He discovered that the website, T-rex.exchange, had several vulnerabilities that could be exploited to get hold of both data and digital currency.
The following month, the hacker managed to gain control over the account of a T-rex employee and around 30,000 USDT. The team detected the unusual transactions and locked the account to prevent further operations with the cryptocurrency.
Once he found that he no longer had access to the compromised account, Khang obtained the personal data of 29,000 customers and created a large number of fake orders, while threatening with further attacks.
He also demanded to be paid $20,000, or else he would reveal that the exchange had been hacked. Chau, the owner, received multiple threats and eventually told his employees to send Khang 300 million dong. He filed a complaint with law enforcement authorities in mid-2021.
In Vietnam, cryptocurrencies are not legalized or regulated yet. Despite their popularity among traders and investors, bitcoin and the like remain unrecognized as assets or means of payment by the State Bank of Vietnam and Vietnamese law. Tags in this story Court, Crypto, crypto assets, crypto exchange, Cryptocurrencies, Cryptocurrency, Extortion, Hack, Hacker, Hackers, Hacking, hacking attack, sentence, trading platform, Vietnam, vietnamese
What are your thoughts on the outcome of the case with the hacked Vietnamese crypto exchange? Share them in the comments section below. Lubomir Tassev
Lubomir Tassev is a journalist from tech-savvy Eastern Europe who likes Hitchens’s quote: “Being a writer is what I am, rather than what I do.” Besides crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration. Executive Linked to Crypto Exchange Bithumb Found Dead Outside His Home: Report EXCHANGES | 5 days ago Bankrupt Crypto Exchange FTX to Start Letting Customers in Japan Withdraw Funds EXCHANGES | Dec 31, 2022
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons Previous articleMastercard Taps Polygon to Empower Emerging Artists in Web3 Tech Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article. Read disclaimerShow comments More Popular NewsIn Case You Missed ItFollowing a Brief Fee Spike, Gas Prices to Move Ethereum Drop 76% in 12 Days
Transaction fees on the Ethereum network are dropping again after average fees saw a brief spike on April 5 jumping to $43 per transfer. 12 days later, average ether fees are close to dropping below $10 per transaction and median-sized ... read more.Goldman Predicts US Recession Odds at 35% in 2 Years, John Mauldin Wouldn"t Be Surprised if Stocks Fell 40% Digital Ruble ‘Much Needed,’ Russia’s Central Bank Says, Won’t Delay Testing Economist Predicts the Fed"s Response to Inflation Will Push Crypto Higher Terra"s Algorithmic Dollar-Pegged Crypto UST Is Now the Third-Largest Stablecoin