Bitcoin
Gone in 12 seconds – Two American brothers accused of stealing $25 million in cryptocurrency theft using skills acquired at MIT
The term “heist” brings to mind masked intruders, ticking clocks, and a getaway driver who is never there when you need them, leading to a lot of mayhem and a tense car chase. It turns out the modern version could be a lot faster than Hollywood movies would have us believe, as two American brothers were accused of stealing $25 million worth of ethereum in just 12 seconds.
Anton Peraire-Bueno and his brother, James Peraire-Bueno, were charged with wire fraud and money laundering in connection with an April 2023 incident in which $25 million in Ethereum cryptocurrency was stolen by a method that prosecutors They call it “exploitation”. (by BBC News).
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan say the computer science and math skills the two developed while studying at MIT helped them carry out the attack, which featured Exploiting a vulnerability in MEV-boost software. A program used by many Ethereum network validators to verify that new transactions are legitimate.
US Attorney Damian Williams said: “As we allege, the defendants’ scheme calls into question the very integrity of the blockchain.” Authorities also say the brothers refused to return the funds when confronted by an Ethereum representative and took further steps to launder their ill-gotten gains.
Cryptocurrency markets have been experiencing something of a surge in value since the beginning of this year, with ethereum maintaining its position as the second most valuable cryptocurrency by market capitalization alongside bitcoin.
The news of this theft and the potential stain on the integrity of the Ethereum blockchain do not appear to have harmed its value, as the coin appears to be holding stable around $3,000 per coin at the time of writing, although – crypto being crypto – it could be worth about the same as a bag of tokens in the next hour or two. The “future of money”, folks. It sure is a rollercoaster!
That said, although cryptocurrency appears to remain something of a wild west frontier, popular currencies like bitcoin and ethereum have already relied on the perceived stability and security of their networks as a major selling point.
The fact that two individuals were able to defeat the supposedly secure system and transfer such a large amount in such a short time may cause some investors to lose some sleep, although it does not appear to have had much of an impact on the market as things stand.
Personally, the mere mention of the term ethereum brings back unhappy memories of GPU shortage, the pandemic and the endless crypto-boom headlines. Still, markets continue to rise and fall, and although huge amounts of money remain tied up in crypto networks, they will always remain a target for those looking to beat the system and make a quick buck.