Last Updated on January 4, 2023 by Bitfinsider

Another flaw used by hackers to start the year saw millions seized from a whale holding significant quantities of the native currency of the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol GMX.

Several members of the community saw unusual GMX token trades on January 3. The transactions were then identified as an exploit that stole $3.4 million worth of GMX tokens from a GMX whale by security companies CertiK and PeckShield.

The hackers allegedly acquired hold of 82,519 GMX tokens and traded the assets for 2,627 Ether, according to data analysis tool Lookonchain. The assets were thereafter cross-chained to the Ethereum network by the attackers via the Hop and Across protocols.

The token’s value fell below $38 as the hack was taking place before quickly rising again. The coin is currently trading at about $41 at the time of writing. The rapid price decline, which may have been brought on by the hack, startled members of the community.

Observing the impact of the breach through the charts, some members of the community noticed remarks on social media that were critical of self custody. The occasion, according to one Twitter user, “highlights the bad side of self-custodial wallets.”

Luke Dashjr, a developer of the Bitcoin core, claimed to have lost Bitcoin to hackers on January 1. As a result, the crypto community has expressed its belief that the exploit underlines the dangers associated with choosing to self-custody digital assets. The notion that ordinary people would have no hope if a top developer didn’t secure his BTC was expressed by other community members.

The holiday season saw activity from DeFi hackers. Through a flash loan assault on December 25, $12 million worth of digital assets were seized, wiping out Defrost Finance users. The following day, another DeFi hack was reported, in which thieves used tainted APKs to steal roughly $8 million from Bitkeep wallets.