Crypto Exchange CoinMetro Suffers Security Breach, But Says Losses Were Mitigated Quickly

Popular cryptocurrency exchange CoinMetro suffered a security breach in the early hours of yesterday, with small amounts of cryptocurrencies, including PRQ tokens, stolen from the exchange. 

The hackers would have made away with more funds if not for PARSIQ technology that alerted CoinMetro of the ongoing hack, prompting the exchange to act swiftly to mitigate the potential loss. 

PARSIO is a blockchain monitoring and workflow automation platform that serves as a bridge between blockchain and off-chain applications, with its native cryptocurrency being PRQ token.

Speaking to Coinfomania via email, PARSIQ said that when CoinMetro was alerted, the Estonia-headquartered exchange quickly identified and isolated the loophole, preventing the attackers from causing severe damage.

The exchange did not state the exact amount lost in the hack, but it noted that customers’ funds are safe.

Providing relief for investors, PARSIQ said affected PRQ holders on the exchange will be fully compensated as its “snapshot technology,” a feature that takes note of particular token holders’ addresses and balances before the hack, was deployed to restore users’ stolen funds. 

Exchange hacks prevalent in crypto

Not your keys, not your coins, is a common saying in the cryptocurrency industry. Traders have been advised not to store large amounts of their assets on trading platforms unless they are actively trading with it.

This is because exchangers are the primary targets of hackers, as several reports have shown how cybercriminals continue to hunt and steal large amounts of crypto assets from these platforms.

Less than two weeks ago, popular crypto exchange, KuCoin was involved in a heist of more than $280 million, one of the largest hacks in the industry.  Many cryptocurrencies including BTC, ETH, XRP, USDT, and over 100 ERC-20 tokens were stolen from the platform.

PARSIQ to the rescue? 

Even though KuCoin would bear the brunt of the losses, few crypto projects such as NOIA Network and CarVertical project had contacted PARSIQ to use its snapshot tool to restore users’ stolen funds. 

Interestingly, PARSIQ stated that despite not being contacted by other affected projects affected by the KuCoin hack, it had compiled snapshots of the remaining projects and uploaded it on a public landing page. 

With PARSIQ’s solution, the stolen funds can be invalidated through a hard fork, giving both investors and exchanges the assurance that losses via hacks on trading platforms can be restored. 

See also: The Ignoble End of Cryptopia Exchange: Hackers Win the Day!