Coins.ph hacked, $6 million lost?

[stadus]

It's surprising that no reliable news outlets have reported on this incident yet, despite it happening yesterday. The amount lost is quite substantial, and one would expect it to be covered by popular TV stations like ABS-CBN, TV5, and GMA. However, there's been no news from these sources. I even tried searching on YouTube and couldn't find any reports from those channels. It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

I only became aware of the news when I read it on Bitpinas the leading Philippine article site that is dedicated to anything Cryptocurrency in the Philippines, on mainstream media, it's not even mentioned but they mention it if it's related to other payment processors they always broadcast it.
The amount is huge but based on their statement it is manageable, but a loss is still a loss they have not been addressing the issues, and the news is all coming from other exchanges or sources and not from Coins.ph.

This is pretty confusing. How on earth can they say the loss is manageable when they haven't even confirmed if a hack happened? Saying that almost makes it sound like a hack did go down, and they're just keeping it under wraps for some reason.

I understand Coins.ph claims to have millions of active users and the worst that could happen is for them to panic which will cause massive withdrawals, the PR management of Coins.ph is not giving the real picture of what really happened and this led to speculation, but so far all the features are available I just withdrew funds from my dashboard and checking all the coins listed and all are functional, withdrawal, deposits and trading are all good.

It's a simple fix for this potential issue - just be straight with the folks, tell the truth. If there hasn't been a hack, they should put out a public statement to clear up all this FUD.

[TravelMug]

I wouldn't be surprised if it will took a while for Coins.ph to responds to this news. As a user of Coins.ph, their services really took a turn in the last 5 years or so. Been using since 2017, and their services is quite good that time. And they respond to queries very quick, and when they were acquired and obviously they grew as the Philippines is one of the most crypto friendly nation in the Southeast Asia, and instead of providing good services, many complains and issues started popping up. And with this news of hacks, for sure it will put a dent on crypto in the Philippines specially with regards to Coins.ph security. Recently, if the majority didn't know here, one of the country government website has hacked recently, and then demanding for ransom money. Obviously, the Philippine government didn't pay, resulting to the data surfacing in the dark web. Perhaps this is what Coins.ph is preventing, Philippine crypto regulators coming after them and questioning their security.

[robelneo]

It's surprising that no reliable news outlets have reported on this incident yet, despite it happening yesterday. The amount lost is quite substantial, and one would expect it to be covered by popular TV stations like ABS-CBN, TV5, and GMA. However, there's been no news from these sources. I even tried searching on YouTube and couldn't find any reports from those channels. It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

I only became aware of the news when I read it on Bitpinas the leading Philippine article site that is dedicated to anything Cryptocurrency in the Philippines, on mainstream media, it's not even mentioned but they mention it if it's related to other payment processors they always broadcast it.
The amount is huge but based on their statement it is manageable, but a loss is still a loss they have not been addressing the issues, and the news is all coming from other exchanges or sources and not from Coins.ph.

This is pretty confusing. How on earth can they say the loss is manageable when they haven't even confirmed if a hack happened? Saying that almost makes it sound like a hack did go down, and they're just keeping it under wraps for some reason.

I understand Coins.ph claims to have millions of active users and the worst that could happen is for them to panic which will cause massive withdrawals, the PR management of Coins.ph is not giving the real picture of what really happened and this led to speculation, but so far all the features are available I just withdrew funds from my dashboard and checking all the coins listed and all are functional, withdrawal, deposits and trading are all good.

It's a simple fix for this potential issue - just be straight with the folks, tell the truth. If there hasn't been a hack, they should put out a public statement to clear up all this FUD.

They really should, other top exchanges that experienced similar hacks have openly admitted and have come forward to admit the hack, are they threatened because Filipinos have now other options to trade their coins on other local exchanges?
It's obvious they are not comfortable being in this position, they don't want to be straightforward about what happened as a top local Crypto exchange getting hacked.
Let's see in the coming weeks if they are going to announce something related to the hacking, maybe they just waiting to finish their investigation before announcing but by delaying they have undermined their users.

[rat03gopoh]

It's a simple fix for this potential issue - just be straight with the folks, tell the truth. If there hasn't been a hack, they should put out a public statement to clear up all this FUD.

I'm sure a hack has occurred, any service wouldn't allow a commotion among customers for several days because of fake news.
However Coinph should try to divert customers' attention from this incident, or the problem will have to become more complicated with consequences that they'll have to face.

[stompix]

It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

Yeah, FTX was FUD, Celsius was FUD, MtGox was FUD, you do realize that if you label everything you don't like as FUD you end up like an ostrich with his head in the sand who thinks everything is fine even though on the surface a dingo is already marinating his ass?

Besides, the article posted by TheBlock has been updated with a comment from the WhiteBit exchange confirming that they received a request from Coins.ph to freeze the funds.

Yeah, the typical announcement, everything is fine, the money is all there but would other exchanges please freeze all funds coming from our service? We're in complete control but it just somehow happens that somebody else was transferring funds out without knowing!

However Coinph should try to divert customers' attention from this incident,

You mean lie to them...

[Rikafip]

But I'm trying to piece everything together, maybe the hack had happened more than 4 days ago. I got a message from them on October 14, at 9:53 A.M. Philippine Local Time about a system upgrade.

In that The Block article you can see that XRP transfers from Coins.ph happened on October 17th so I guess that message you got on October 14 might actually be about system upgrade and not trying to cover the alleged hack.

It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

If its just a fud why don't they say so, instead dodging giving straight answer?

[salad daging]

It's a simple fix for this potential issue - just be straight with the folks, tell the truth. If there hasn't been a hack, they should put out a public statement to clear up all this FUD.

I'm sure a hack has occurred, any service wouldn't allow a commotion among customers for several days because of fake news.
However Coinph should try to divert customers' attention from this incident, or the problem will have to become more complicated with consequences that they'll have to face.

This means that they are covering up all the bad things for the sake of their platform as if nothing happened, customers will now be observant because news from outside unexpectedly they will trust customers and make questions.
If Coinsph is diverting all attention to others for this hacking incident they are not so professional and just want to cover up all what happened, still all what happens must be officially reported so that customers know it.

[TravelMug]

I did try to send them a message and asked for a confirmation, unfortunately, I just get a generic response from them,



I'm thinking to make a follow-up email, but most likely I will get the same response though. Not gonna waste my time, but as for me, this is a confirmation that they hacked was true, but they don't want to admit it.

[stadus]

It's a simple fix for this potential issue - just be straight with the folks, tell the truth. If there hasn't been a hack, they should put out a public statement to clear up all this FUD.

I'm sure a hack has occurred, any service wouldn't allow a commotion among customers for several days because of fake news.
However Coinph should try to divert customers' attention from this incident, or the problem will have to become more complicated with consequences that they'll have to face.

They are regulated, and they have an obligation to inform people about the status of the exchange, whether it's true that it's been hacked or not. However, since they haven't issued an official statement about the hack, there's a possibility that no hack has occurred. I'm not aware of any users who have complained about a loss of their balance, but AFAIK, there haven't been any complaints. Perhaps some users haven't seen the news or heard the rumors that may be affecting their operations, which is why they might not be taking it seriously.

It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

Yeah, FTX was FUD, Celsius was FUD, MtGox was FUD, you do realize that if you label everything you don't like as FUD you end up like an ostrich with his head in the sand who thinks everything is fine even though on the surface a dingo is already marinating his ass?

I prefer not to draw any conclusions, as the exchange itself hasn't confirmed that a hack has indeed occurred. Besides the article we previously read, there are no other reliable sources that can confirm the incident, and it's possible that coins.ph is attempting to keep this matter hidden. Until they issue an official announcement, I'm skeptical that it has happened. However, it is concerning that they haven't provided sufficient reassurance to their community to prevent people from panicking.

It's very likely that this is just FUD, a tactic to spread panic now that the market is in bullish mode.

If its just a fud why don't they say so, instead dodging giving straight answer?

They have responded, but the reply wasn't entirely satisfying, as it seemed like an automated message assuring the safety of funds. Therefore, it's a matter of personal choice whether to trust their response or engage in speculation. Ultimately, it's up to us how we approach this matter.

[coin-investor]

They have responded, but the reply wasn't entirely satisfying, as it seemed like an automated message assuring the safety of funds. Therefore, it's a matter of personal choice whether to trust their response or engage in speculation. Ultimately, it's up to us how we approach this matter.

We all know people don't want an automated response when it comes to exchanges where they are trading, and these kinds of responses will make the users think that something is not right, since it was not covered by mainstream media they think that the majority of users are not aware of it so they prefer not to announce so there will be no panic.

But if they see that there are requests or demands for transparency they will yield to their users, their competitors are improving so they should value their users' opinions.

[stadus]

They have responded, but the reply wasn't entirely satisfying, as it seemed like an automated message assuring the safety of funds. Therefore, it's a matter of personal choice whether to trust their response or engage in speculation. Ultimately, it's up to us how we approach this matter.

We all know people don't want an automated response when it comes to exchanges where they are trading, and these kinds of responses will make the users think that something is not right, since it was not covered by mainstream media they think that the majority of users are not aware of it so they prefer not to announce so there will be no panic.

But if they see that there are requests or demands for transparency they will yield to their users, their competitors are improving so they should value their users' opinions.

The only government department that could dig into this matter is the central bank as they are regulated by BSP. Given the alleged huge amount lost, they really should have launched an investigation right away. Maybe we'll wait a bit to see if any news surfaces about it, but if a whole month passes and there's still no word on this, I guess we can safely assume it's just some FUD.

[Rikafip]

They have responded, but the reply wasn't entirely satisfying, as it seemed like an automated message assuring the safety of funds. Therefore, it's a matter of personal choice whether to trust their response or engage in speculation.

I know that they responded, but as I said they decided to avoid giving straight answer which would be a logical thing to do rather than giving "funds are safu" whihc we heard many times before in the past and it runed out funds were far from safe.  As a matter of fact, it kinda reminds me of Justin Sun tweet from few weeks ago when HTX (ex Huobi) got hacked, just without admission part.

Ultimately, it's up to us how we approach this matter.

That's true. Unfortunately, an everage crypto enthusiast learned nothing from FTX/Celsius downfall.

[bhadz]

There's an update regarding this news and hack, Chainalysis confirms that it's actually Coins.ph products (XRP) that has been hacked when this news breaks.

From this article: 12 Million XRP Reportedly Stolen From Coins.ph Now Labeled in Chainalysis Products

[...]

• Coins.ph suffered a possible security breach resulting in the theft of approximately $6 million worth of XRP.
• Chainalysis, a blockchain analysis firm, has confirmed that the funds in question are now labeled within their products, allowing their customers to investigate their movement.

[...]

The 12.2 million XRP, valued at approximately $6.6 million during the potential exploit, constitutes to around 20% of the Series C funding to Coins.ph in May 2022. BitPinas has shared these insights to Coins.ph before this article is published and has sought the company’s comments to provide clarity on what exactly these funds are.

On the last quote, you can see that amount came from their funding last year and it's 20% and kind a huge if that's from their investors.

[Jating]

And just to bring some light on the supposedly hacked,

[Breaking News!] Coins.ph XRP Hackers Charged for $6 Million Crypto Theft, Escape PH

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed criminal charges against two Russian nationals, Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, for stealing ₱340 million worth of XRP cryptocurrency from Coins.ph.

Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, former consultants at Coins.ph, allegedly used their insider knowledge to breach the company’s system, according to reports from PNA News and Inquirer.

Just too bad to hear the former consultants are involved, probably after their tenure from Coins.ph, they've planned this attack as they know the ins and outs of the system and could probably planning all of this when they still have accessed to it.

But now they are already out of the Philippines so gonna be hard for Coins.ph or any authorities to track them if they are now inside Russia as the Russian government might not cooperate with the PH authorities or even Interpol.

[Baofeng]

^^ Yes, we are talking about this is our local community in the other forum and as I have said before, the problem with coins.ph is that they keep a mum on the said hack when it was all over the news already and then they don't want to acknowledge it.

And now it's a double-blackeye for them, it's because the hackers is the individual that they have hired as consults and probably they have been paid good money to stay the system protected. But then again, they are the ones who mastermind this massive hack. Really hard to fathom by now, however, if they acknowledge it right away, probably this two was not able to escape or if they do their investigation very quickly, they could have prevented the two Russians from going out of the country.

[Darker45]

And just to bring some light on the supposedly hacked,

[Breaking News!] Coins.ph XRP Hackers Charged for $6 Million Crypto Theft, Escape PH

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed criminal charges against two Russian nationals, Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, for stealing ₱340 million worth of XRP cryptocurrency from Coins.ph.

Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, former consultants at Coins.ph, allegedly used their insider knowledge to breach the company’s system, according to reports from PNA News and Inquirer.

Just too bad to hear the former consultants are involved, probably after their tenure from Coins.ph, they've planned this attack as they know the ins and outs of the system and could probably planning all of this when they still have accessed to it.

For the nth time, the DoJ has failed. That agency is terribly incompetent. The two were charged way back October of last year. Were they arrested? Were they on bail bond? I think they were largely free despite the charges involving a huge amount. Weren't they listed on the Immigration lookout bulletin? They're foreigners and were obviously flight risks.

Also, not only is Coins.ph a big failure in being transparent to their customers as to what really happened, they're also a big failure in not immediately cutting their consultants' access right at the moment when their tenure ended.

I also wondered how Coins.ph knew the stolen funds were going to Whitebit Exchange's direction and was able to email them before the funds were deposited. More curious was the reaction of Whitebit Exchange. I guess the goal was to recover the money. But instead of accepting the money and freezing it right away, Whitebit Exchange decided to block the deposits. Or am I wrong about this?

[Jating]

And just to bring some light on the supposedly hacked,

[Breaking News!] Coins.ph XRP Hackers Charged for $6 Million Crypto Theft, Escape PH

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed criminal charges against two Russian nationals, Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, for stealing ₱340 million worth of XRP cryptocurrency from Coins.ph.

Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, former consultants at Coins.ph, allegedly used their insider knowledge to breach the company’s system, according to reports from PNA News and Inquirer.

Just too bad to hear the former consultants are involved, probably after their tenure from Coins.ph, they've planned this attack as they know the ins and outs of the system and could probably planning all of this when they still have accessed to it.

For the nth time, the DoJ has failed. That agency is terribly incompetent. The two were charged way back October of last year. Were they arrested? Were they on bail bond? I think they were largely free despite the charges involving a huge amount. Weren't they listed on the Immigration lookout bulletin? They're foreigners and were obviously flight risks.

Also, not only is Coins.ph a big failure in being transparent to their customers as to what really happened, they're also a big failure in not immediately cutting their consultants' access right at the moment when their tenure ended.

I also wondered how Coins.ph knew the stolen funds were going to Whitebit Exchange's direction and was able to email them before the funds were deposited. More curious was the reaction of Whitebit Exchange. I guess the goal was to recover the money. But instead of accepting the money and freezing it right away, Whitebit Exchange decided to block the deposits. Or am I wrong about this?

I try to look at the Whitebit Exchange,

Investigators think the duo moved the coins onto other platforms as they tried to cover their tracks. These reportedly included OKX, WhiteBIT, SimpleSwap, and Fixed Float.

At the time, WhiteBIT said that it had blocked a number of XRP transfers from Coins.ph on the latter’s request. WhiteBIT said it had blocked a total of 445,000 “stolen XRP tokens.”

https://cryptonews.com/news/two-russians-accused-of-hacking-philippines-based-crypto-exchange-coins-ph.htm

So probably they got it on time and had asked WhiteBit to freeze and blocked the account. But the scammers could have gotten away using other methods to hide or mixed the coins with other exchanges and that Coins.ph might be late in informing those exchanges as they uses sophisticated methods to hide their tracks.

[bhadz]

Really hard to fathom by now, however, if they acknowledge it right away, probably this two was not able to escape or if they do their investigation very quickly, they could have prevented the two Russians from going out of the country.

Yeah, they were quite slow in acknowledging it when something was off bit already into their platform and also from the acts of these two. It was all well orchestrated by the two consultants.

But now they are already out of the Philippines so gonna be hard for Coins.ph or any authorities to track them if they are now inside Russia as the Russian government might not cooperate with the PH authorities or even Interpol.

I do hope that they will coordinate with our authorities as in the past administration, Russia and Philippines have got a good communication and relationship.