Hacker who stole $600M of crypto returns $260M… ’cos they don’t dig money?-Computerfanfield

Update 12/08/2021 4.40 IST: According to a report from Reuters , the hacker has now returned more than half of the money.

Hackers stealing cryptocurrency is a regular event in the last couple of years. But in a bizarre incident, a hacker who stole $600 million worth of cryptocurrency earlier this week, returned $260 million of them.

Here’s what happened. A hacker took advantage of a bug in Poly Network, a decentralized finance platform that lets you exchange various tokens, and stole $600 million in various digital currencies . This was touted as one of the biggest hacks in the decentralized world.

A day later, the network tweeted that the unknown hacker has returned $1 million in Polygon, $3 million in Ethereum, and $256 million in BSC. However, more than $350 million worth of cryptocurrency still remains with the hacker.

As ZDNet noted, security researchers believe the attack is tied to a Poly Network privileged contract called the “ EthCrossChainManager .” You can read more about the technicalities of the hack here .

Tom Robinson, the founder blockchains solutions company Elliptic, has shared a Q & A with the alleged hacker. In the post, the hacker claims that they didn’t want to cause any panic and wasn’t interested in the money:

One of the theories behind hackers returning the money is Poly Network’s threat of legal action . Robinson opined that the transparency of blockchain makes it difficult to launder the money, so the hacker decided to return it instead. We’ll have to wait and see they return all the money.

Hard Fork’s crypto-themed Xmas gift guide — for the HODLers in your life

Christmas is just around the corner and that means presents, not just for you, but for your friends, family, and that unlucky draw you got in your office’s secret Santa. It probably also means having to attend a swathe of public gatherings in which someone will probably talk your ear off about Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, and the awesomeness of blockchain.

But don’t despair, for Hard Fork has created a cryptocurrency gift guide bursting with ideas to help you find something to give the hodler in your life.

Hardware wallet

If you’re buying a present for a cryptocurrency fanatic that doesn’t already have a hardware wallet, then this could make for a great gift. Hardware wallets can be one of the most secure ways of holding cryptocurrency. Ledger and Trezor are two of the more popular options on the market.

Back in January 2018, Ledger said that it’d sold more than a million units of its Nano S wallet.

T here are plenty of options, but the Trezor One and Ledger Nano S both represent good value for money at around $60 each.

If you’re tech savvy yourself, maybe you could throw some cryptocurrency on there as a sweet little prize for the recipient.

Bitcoin bog roll

Bitcoiners are people too, which means they have all the natural bodily functions that you have. So why not lend them a helping hand to take their toilet game to the next level with Bitcoin-themed bog roll .

The product, listed on Amazon , is allegedly “not just a hilarious gift, it’s also quite practical.” Don’t hold out much hope though, because some reviews suggest it might not be that great when being used for… its intended purpose.

That said, it’ll undoubtedly get a few awkward chortles as its unwrapped and it gives the gift’s recipient yet another way to subtly let visitors know that they’re “into Bitcoin.”

Cryptocurrency socks

Say what you will about getting socks as a Christmas present, but cryptocurrency -inspired feet sheaths are sure to bring warmth further up the body of whomever you give them to.

These socks, from Amazon , are sold in a variety pack featuring five cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin , Ethereum , Stellar, Monero, and Litecoin . That’s a pair of socks for every day of the working week!

Or maybe you know that the hodler in your life is big on Bitcoin, or a lover of Litecoin. If that’s the case, Kryptoez have got you (well, your feet) covered. Here, you can pick up cryptocurrency themed socks by the pair.

Crypto themed clothing

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about people in the cryptocurrency space, is that the only thing hodlers love more than Bitcoin itself is talking about it. Anyone that’s into the cryptocurrency will surely love you forever if you can give them yet another reason to talk about it more.

With an “ Ask me about Bitcoin ” t-shirt, they will get just that, whoever you chose to give this gift to will be fighting off the crypto curious crowds in public.

Ask me about Bitcoin t-shirt But what if the hodler in your life is a little classier than that? Maybe some Bitcoin-themed cufflinks would be better? Of course, they would!

These Bitcoin cufflinks could be the gift that brings a twinkle to the eye of your crypto compatriot this Christmas. These gold-plated cufflinks will be a subtle nod to cryptocurrency that will tie any smart outfit together.

A gold Bitcoin money clip

There couldn’t be a less ironic way of carrying around dirty fiat currency than doing so with a Bitcoin money clip . That said, cash is the OG when it comes to anonymous payment methods so maybe it’s not that inappropriate.

Whatever the case, this will always remind the recipient that even when they’re spending cash, they should be thinking about Bitcoin. Which they probably are.

A book about Bitcoin, and cryptocurrency

There’re tonnes of books about Bitcoin and blockchain available at the moment, so it can be kinda hard to pick one for the crypto enthusiast in your life if you’re not into it yourself. But never fear, Hard Fork’s got your back.

There’re books for all experience levels, including babies. Yep, babies. But based on the smattering of books and excerpts I’ve read in recent years I keep coming back to one book; “Bitcoin: The future of money?” by Dominic Frisby .

If you’re new to the space, Frisby’s historical recount of Bitcoin’s creation and basics are easy to understand. If you’re more experienced, Frisby’s style and the way he weaves the story of Bitcoin together makes for enjoyable reading. It makes either a great starting point, or a great break from heavier aspects of the topic.

For more Bitcoin and blockchain book recommendations, read our full list here .

Now go out and find something special to give the gift of crypto this Christmas.

Satoshi Nakaboto: ‘66% of Bitcoin mining happens in China’

Our robot colleague Satoshi Nakaboto writes about Bitcoin every fucking day.

Welcome to another edition of Bitcoin Today, where I, Satoshi Nakaboto, tell you what’s been going on with Bitcoin in the past 24 hours. As Satoshi Nakamoto used to say: Do what you love and you’ll never work another day!

Bitcoin Price

We closed the day, December 11 2019, at a price of $7,217. That’s a minor 0.82 percent decline in 24 hours, or -$59.76. It was the lowest closing price in fifteen days.

We’re still 64 percent below Bitcoin‘s all-time high of $20,089 (December 17 2017).

Bitcoin market cap

Bitcoin’s market cap ended the day at $130,609,895,528. It now commands 67 percent of the total crypto market.

Bitcoin volume

Yesterday’s volume of $16,350,490,689 was the lowest in two days, 0 percent below the year’s average, and 63 percent below the year’s high. That means that yesterday, the Bitcoin network shifted the equivalent of 345 tons of gold.

Bitcoin transactions

A total of 288,821 transactions were conducted yesterday, which is 11 percent below the year’s average and 36 percent below the year’s high.

Bitcoin transaction fee

Yesterday’s average transaction fee concerned $0.22. That’s $3.49 below the year’s high of $3.71.

Bitcoin distribution by address

As of now, there are 11,138 Bitcoin millionaires, or addresses containing more than $1 million worth of Bitcoin.

Furthermore, the top 10 Bitcoin addresses house 5.6 percent of the total supply, the top 100 15.1 percent, and the top 1000 34.9 percent.

Company with a market cap closest to Bitcoin

With a market capitalization of $131 billion, Netflix has a market capitalization most similar to that of Bitcoin at the moment.

Bitcoin’s path towards $1 million

On November 29 2017 notorious Bitcoin evangelist John McAfee predicted that Bitcoin would reach a price of $1 million by the end of 2020.

He even promised to eat his own dick if it doesn’t. Unfortunately for him it’s 95.3 percent behind being on track. Bitcoin‘s price should have been $155,035 by now, according to dickline.info.

Bitcoin on Twitter

Yesterday 14,324 fresh tweets about Bitcoin were sent out into the world. That’s 21.9 percent below the year’s average. The maximum amount of tweets per day this year about Bitcoin was 41,687.