Dormant Hacker Moves $48M from Orbit Chain Exploit to Tornado Cash

• The hacker or group started transferring around $48 million to Tornado Cash on Saturday.
• Several transactions draining $81.5M from the protocol occurred during the end of 2023.

Several transactions draining $81.5 million from the protocol occurred during the end of 2023 on the cross-chain bridge Orbit Chain, which has significant links to the Klaytn ecosystem.

The assets were left undisturbed after the attack until Saturday, when the hacker or group started transferring around $48 million to Tornado Cash, a cryptocurrency mixing service based on Ethereum, as reported by Arkham Intelligence on X.

Recovery Attempts Underway

The reason for the hacker’s return from hibernation remains a mystery. The transfer of funds was announced by Orbit Chain, which has only started providing certain bridging services again after the exploit.

The protocol stated:

“Our team is currently working closely with relevant authorities to swiftly track the stolen assets and take necessary measures accordingly.”

According to blockchain data, the hacker transferred over $48 million to another wallet before transferring the assets to Tornado Cash. Because the value of ether has increased after the incident, the hacker still has around $71 million in their possession.

The protocol has said that the attack did not arise from a flaw in the Orbit Bridge smart contract or the loss of a validator key. However, Orbit Chain has not provided a conclusive explanation for the occurrence.

Orbit Chain speculated in a blog post that the assault may have been caused by the previous chief information security officer of the protocol engaging in covert operations. The protocol said that the team is now pursuing the appropriate civil and criminal actions, since the news has been shocking to the staff.

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