Why do hackers steal huge amounts of bitcoins?

[BlackHatCoiner]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

[Mbitr]

A mixer can be used to hide or disguise the bitcoin footprint ?

[shata]

Indeed, hackers will leave footprints if they try to transfer funds from hacked account. More so to speak that they are targeting vulnerable funds; thus, susceptible for an attack.
However, most of these attacks were very successful that they can still managed to get btc and convert it into fiat. However, if there are individuals trying to hack, they would be very big and well funded. In addition, attacks through phising websites and application can be worth noting. Note that most hacks happened in huge markets like bitfinex, binance, huobi and etc. Recent event on twitter would not be considered a direct attack to btc, rather they are accumulating btc from scammed victims. Well, time will tell what made hackers do what they do. Are they trying to test the system of bitcoin or are they trying to proved something they are good about?

[DeathAngel]

A mixer can be used to hide or disguise the bitcoin footprint ?

Exactly what I was going to say, you could put the coins through a mixer multiple times in batches. It should clean them up, you could sell a bunch P2P on Localbitcoins & nobody would be any wiser.

[crwth]

For your question in the subject, they are doing that for the ”easy money.”  I don't think they are willing to hack small amounts if the thing they are doing is complicated. And for your concerns that they can be traced, it's just like what the other members said above me; it's the mixers.

There was a time where there are a lot of mixers, but a lot has closed as well because of the track down of those mixers.

[Jawhead999]

Note that most hacks happened in huge markets like bitfinex, binance, huobi and etc.

Little correction, huobi never got hacked till now [1]. But, I'm not say houbi is 100% safest exchanges... we can't know what next about this exchanges.

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints.

Nope, the funds has been moved to 1M22U5uYEGUV1QkxSwUecebRGPW6uQgjRz and 38tgyi9ZobWNg5zUpzfDd1u5J3uTqyUdB2 [2]

Like anyone said above, bitcoin mixer will hide his identity and can't be traced.

[1] https://www.blockchain.com/btc/address/14RYUUaMW1shoxCav4znEh64xnTtL3a2Ek
[2] https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2017/11/22/correction-huobi-wasnt-hacked-in-2015-but-the-2015-bitstamp-hacker-did-withdraw-12000-btc-from-huobi/

[cryptomaniac_xxx]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

That's where bitcoin mixer enter the picture, to obfuscate and conceal their tracks.

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

There are cases that most hack bitcoin are being move, it might take time for the hackers though, but definitely they will and they are going to find ways to cash it out and take the risk to enjoy their loot.

[Review Master]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

If there are no ways to use the funds why they will try to do so. Simple answer : hackers know the way to use the hacked funds , that's why they hack any centralized exchange try to do double spend attack on any blockchains. As @Mbitr said, they could use mixer to hide their identity. Also there might be a way to use the funds without converting to fiat currency which we don't know yet except the hacker community, IMO. If anyone want to know why they hack ,than he/she will need to think like hacker not like the hunter of a hacker. 

[Jating]

They steal because they are criminals in the online world and there's no distinction between offline and online, they are still criminals in the eyes of the law.

There are ways to hide like others have said, tumbling services or bitcoin mixers. And those who breach twitter and pull a fake giveaways, they already used a service called Wasabi wallet - which is a privacy focused wallet.

[gentlemand]

So long that it may be forgotten.

No such thing. There are lots of people who monitor the addresses of known and significant hacks. It's no work involved in setting up an alert.

We still hear about coins moving years down the line. A thief would have to do something to hide the coins. Simply waiting and then moving them in the open would result in action against them waking up. I expect law enforcement would be doing the same and exchanges too.

[suzanne5223]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right?

Hacker can easily move the stolen BTC though the wallet address used by the hacker will be tagged.
Why do hacker steal huge amount of BTC? We cant really know their intentions but the number why thief steal is to make huge money quick.

He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found?

It will only leave footprints if the hacker dont use bitcoin tumbler.

 

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

The only way to get by the felony is by exchange and wallet provided improve their security.

[hatshepsut93]

336 BTC isn't that huge. Thieves will mix them many-many times, with various methods, then they might start moving some of the coins between services to make them look more clean, then they might launder them or find some way to cash them out without major exchanges. They could look for OTC trading, p2p trading, exchange services, ATMs with cash withdrawals, etc.

[btc78]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

It is the Mixing company that hackers will Run because they can mix the bitcoin and will Hide them from being Pointed,or they can Use Gambling site to hide their identity ,Hackers have their own ways of taking the bitcoin.

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

And here you have answered your own question,so what would be the real question here?you have idea about what will hacker do?and besides bitcoin is better on HOlding so maybe these hackers are also investing for long term?anyway what does matter since it is really hard to take them down,many have tried but failure is what they've got.

[mindrust]

If they are smart enough to steal those huge amounts, they are probably also smart enough to hide their tracks too.

I'd bet that they'll find a way to cash them out.

[ohyeahhaha122]

hackers who steal bitcoins always have ways to launder money and leave no trace, they always calculate in advance, if they stole bitcoins to do nothing, they did not, there are doubts that hackers money laundering with eth transaction fee

[Leviathan.007]

Just to answer your question it's because want easy money and stealing Bitcoin is the best way to do it. However, you said they can't use it but they can. They will usually sell the bitcoins easily after mixing the Bitcoins using a Bitcoin mixer service in order to make the transactions untraceable. Now imagine they use the mixer for multiple times. None can track then that easily. That's why, some exchanges and mostly local exchanges on clearnet won't accept mixed Bitcoins.

[Rosilito]

If they are smart enough to steal those huge amounts, they are probably also smart enough to hide their tracks too.

I'd bet that they'll find a way to cash them out.

Exactly! They won't set their foot into dirty doings without knowing their way out. It is not like, they are letting themselves get caught in the end, so what's the point of stealing if they won't get the chance to use it  .

As majority said, this bitcoin mixers thing would come into play. So, if you want to know what bitcoin mixers are, then.
Here's the thread for you:

• https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5106873.0

And here's the thread for the list of bitcoin mixers we currently have:

• https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2827109.0

[gentlemand]

Exactly! They won't set their foot into dirty doings without knowing their way out. It is not like letting themselves getting caught in the end, so what's the point of stealing if they won't get the chance to use it  .

And yet many of them are so lazy and stupid they often do hang themselves. It only takes one slip to blow your anonymity.

The address that was posted on all of the hacked Twitter accounts has had past transactions to exchanges. The chances are there's some link to ID somewhere along the way.

Quite a few dark market druggists have sent funds directly from sales to exchange accounts that sent the pigs straight to their door.

[kryptqnick]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

I'm pretty sure they're stealing because they have a plan on how to get fiat for them. Mixers have been mentioned here, and I think it's a reasonable first step. Then goes a deal somewhere where no KYC is asked (meeting someone in person and getting cash or using a KYC-free ATM). Finally, if there's enough money stolen, even if the identity of a person becomes compromised, with sufficient resources it should be possible to get fake documents and travel to a place where nobody's looking for you, start and new life. Not to mention that crypto crimes don't seem to be investigated as seriously as fiat crimes (maybe I'm wrong) because in many places cryptos are in the gray area and there's no common law.

[Slow death]

I was reading about Cashaa, that was hacked and 336BTC were stolen. But the hacker can't move them right? He will leave footprints. So why should hackers steal them since they can be found? For example if they want to convert them to fiat.

The only way I think you could get by from this felony is to keep them on very long term. So long that it may be forgotten. But still, it may.

maybe this is the point where most people hate banks (without much sense in my opinion) if they are convinced that the cryptocurrency system is also very broken in this part, hackers know that stealing cryptocurrencies is something much more advantageous than stealing fiat in the bank where you have security cameras and always have a witness and even if it takes many years, eventually the thief will be found, while in the case of stealing any exchange there is little and no chance of being found. That is why I believe that anyone who has money on exchanges (just like me) should not sleep soundly ... this is the great disadvantage of the decentralized world of cryptocurrencies.

But of course with KYC on all exchanges it might be possible to have a more secure system capable of finding hackers, but there are mixers that, although the intent of the mixers' creators are good (I think) help the hackers in some way and escape with stolen bitcoins