Cyber-thieves have managed to steal a staggering $8.9 million from cryptocurrency firm SafeMoon by exploiting a vulnerability in the firm’s liquidity pool. This incident took place on March 28, when the SFM:BNB pool operated by SafeMoon was compromised, as confirmed by the firm’s CEO, John Karony.
Liquidity pools play a crucial role in providing liquidity to decentralized finance (DeFi) exchanges, as they consist of large amounts of cryptocurrency locked in a smart contract. However, in this case, the vulnerability in SafeMoon’s liquidity pool was exploited, leading to the significant theft.
Following the breach, Karony reassured token holders and the community by stating that the team had taken immediate action to address the issue. They were able to identify the exploit, patch the vulnerability, and are now working with chain forensics consultants to determine the full extent of the attack.
Despite the attack, Karony emphasized that the firm’s exchange, as well as other pools and the SafeMoon Wallet, remain unaffected. The exploit seems to have stemmed from a recent update, which inadvertently introduced a bug that was exploited by the cyber-thieves.
According to Dappd CEO, “DeFiMark,” the attacker exploited the public burn() function to remove SFM tokens from the SFM:BNB liquidity pool, artificially inflating the price of SFM. By selling the tokens at an inflated rate within the same transaction, the attacker was able to deplete the remaining WBNB in the pool.
Interestingly, the individual claiming responsibility for the attack has expressed a desire to return the stolen funds, citing the incident as an error. However, there are suspicions that this could be a tactic to buy time for laundering the stolen cryptocurrency.
In conclusion, the cybersecurity incident at SafeMoon serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities that exist within the cryptocurrency space. It underscores the importance of robust security measures and constant vigilance to protect against cyber threats. As the investigation into the attack continues, SafeMoon and its community are working together to ensure the safety and integrity of their assets.