Crypto Wallet BitKeep faces exploit, loses $1 Million

October 18, 2022

Key Takeaways

Hacker reportedly exploited a swap/router of BitKeep wallet to drain funds
Following the hack, the BitKeep Swap service was suspended to ensure that there were no other asset security issues.

The leading crypto wallet BitKeep has been exploited, with the hacker draining $1 million from it by exploiting the swap feature. The attack was first brought to public attention by blockchain security and data analytics company PeckShield.

PeckShield, in its tweet, stated that hackers have likely exploited a swap/router of the multi-chain wallet that integrates wallet, swap, non-fungible token market, and decentralized application browser in a single location.PeckShield further urged users to revoke permission to the wallet and check for unregistered tokens.

It seems a swap/router (@BitKeepOS ?) is being exploited (w/ loss ~$1M): Please revoke:
(1) https://t.co/9axb7vT2Hl
(2) Connect your wallet
(3) Check Include unregistered tokens ..
(3) Search for 0x75eb..12de to see if any have approvals
(4) Revoke approval if exist

— PeckShield Inc. (@peckshield) October 17, 2022

Soon after,BitKeep revealed that the attack happened on the BNB Chain, causing a loss of nearly $100 Million. The wallet provider further added that the development team had managed to contain the emergency.

BitKeep stated that it had also taken measures following the hack. BitKeep Swap service was suspended to ensure no other asset security issues existed. The firm would reimburse users who suffered losses and also reward those who can assist in identifying the hackers and help recover the stolen assets.

2/4 For this accident, BitKeep is taking the following measures:

1⃣Suspend BitKeep Swap service to ensure that there are no other asset security issues
2⃣Communicate and cooperate with major security agencies to track down the hackers and do our best to recover the stolen assets

— BitKeep Wallet (@BitKeepOS) October 17, 2022

However, this latest hack is not the first exploit on the BNB Chain in recent days. Earlier this month, Binance’s network, BNB Chain, was exploited. The vulnerability allowed the hackers to withdraw 2M Binance Coins worth more than $500M from the BEP-2 to BEP-20 bridge.

Recently, crypto hacks and exploits have been plaguing the Web3 space. According to an August Chainlaysis report, $1.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency has been stolen in hacks of services, compared to just under $1.2 billion at the same point in 2021.

Earlier this month, Chainalysis pointed out that bad actors have already stolen $718 million from DeFi protocols via 11 separate hacks so far in October. In 2022, the highest number of hacks was witnessed in the month of March, with more than 15 instances.

Chainalysis claims that if the current hacking trends continue, 2022 is expected to surpass 2021 as the biggest year for hacking ever. The firm highlighted that cross-chain bridges remain a “major target for hackers,” especially since three bridges were breached in October so far, resulting in a loss of approximately $600 million.