Calls for robust national regulatory measures intensify as South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Upbit finds itself in the crosshairs of hackers.
During a conversation between Dunamu, the company that operates and owns Upbit, and a South Korean Representative, Park Seong-jung, concerning data was revealed, as cited by an October 9 report from Yonhap News Agency in South Korea.
According to the report, newly-revealed numbers mark a 117% increase compared to the same period in 2022 and a jaw-dropping 1,800% spike from the first half of 2020.
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Upbit, a significant player in the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange market, manages around $1.2 billion in 24-hour trading volume, as per BitDegree statistics. It stands alongside other major South Korean exchanges like Bithumb, Coinone, and Gopax.
To combat the increased security threats, Dunamu, the company that owns Upbit, disclosed that the crypto exchange had elevated the share of its funds stored in cold wallets to 70%. Upbit has also augmented its protective measures for funds kept in hot wallets.
Despite this backdrop of escalating cyber threats, Upbit has managed to maintain its security integrity. A spokesperson for Dunamu commented:
We took various measures to prevent recurrence, such as distributing hot wallets and operating them, and to date, not a single cyber breach has occurred.
However, Upbit's security hasn't been entirely foolproof. The crypto exchange had to suspend services for Aptos tokens last September. This followed a glitch where a counterfeit token named "ClaimAPTGift.com" infiltrated 400,000 Aptos wallets on the platform.
Park Seong-jung emphasized the broader trend of increasing cryptocurrency hacks and urged for more assertive actions from the South Korean government. He called on the Ministry of Science and Technology to execute extensive cybersecurity tests and audits:
The Ministry of Science and Technology must conduct large-scale whitewashing mock tests and investigate information security conditions in preparation for cyber attacks against virtual asset exchanges where hacking attempts are frequent.
The shocking rise in hacking attempts against Upbit underscores the increasing cybersecurity risks that cryptocurrency exchanges are facing today. Although Upbit has taken significant strides in ramping up its security measures, this incident serves as a warning for both crypto exchanges and governmental agencies to bolster their defenses against the growing threats in the crypto world.
