The chairman of Ripple, Chris Larsen, had his personal XRP account hacked last month. Even though the attack happened on January 30, it wasn’t until January 31 that it was made public due to ZachXBT, a well-known blockchain expert, who discovered and reported the issue.

At first, confusion resulted from Bithomp and XRPScan, two XRPL explorers, mistaking the hacked address for Ripple rather than Larsen. Larsen, however, cleared up any confusion by stating that the wallet that was targeted was actually his account and had nothing to do with Ripple.

The Path of the Exploit

According to ZachXBT’s on-chain investigation, the hackers quickly transferred the stolen assets across a number of centralized exchanges, such as HTX (previously Huobi), MEXC, Gate.io, Binance, Kraken, and OKX. By changing the pilfered XRP into other tokens, the attackers proceeded even further.

Thomas Silkjaer, Head of Analytics and Compliance at the XRPL Ledger Foundation, announced continued attempts to locate and retrieve the assets in reaction to the hack. To determine which wallets were involved in the incident, the foundation contacted many exchanges and the police.

Swift Action from Binance: $4.2M Frozen

In a recent article on X, Binance CEO Richard Teng revealed the proactive steps implemented by the platform. Teng stated that a part of the $213 million that was taken, or $4.2 million, was frozen by Binance after it discovered the attack impacting Larsen’s account early on. The prompt action was taken in an attempt to stop the hackers from using the Binance platform to launder their illicit riches.

Community Collaboration and Recognition

Teng thanked the cryptocurrency community for quickly letting exchanges know about the issue. ZachXBT was commended for alerting the public to the occurrence, demonstrating the supportive community within the cryptocurrency field in times of need. Teng also emphasized the importance of the assistance the Ripple team provided in resolving the hack’s consequences.

Continued Attempts and Explanations

Silkjær stressed collaboration with law enforcement and continued efforts to retrieve the remaining assets. Interestingly, Teng has promised that they will keep an eye on on-chain transactions to stop any more money from accessing their platform, but Binance is the only exchange that has made public the steps taken against the exploiters.

An explanation was provided for the phrase “Ripple hack,” which was misused. Teng initially described the event as a Ripple hack, but once Silkjær made it clear that Chris Larsen’s personal account—not Ripple—was compromised, Teng changed his phrase.

Fight Against Cryptocurrency Crime

The continued fight against cybercriminals is highlighted by the combined actions of exchanges, blockchain detectives, and law enforcement as the cryptocurrency ecosystem faces yet another security threat. The quick response by Binance serves as a reminder of how important taking preventative measures is to maintaining the integrity of the cryptocurrency ecosystem. In order to stop and lessen future dangers, the industry will probably become more vigilant and collaborative in the wake of this tragedy.