Poly Network Hacker Returns $600 Million, Offered $500,000 Bug Bounty

White Hat hacker behind Poly Network breach says they will not be claiming the $500,000 reward for exposing a critical security flaw on Poly Network.

by Sam Reynolds /

August 13, 2021 02:09 pm

Source: Shutterstock

Almost all the funds stolen during the Poly Network hack have been returned
On Twitter, digital assets experts debated whether the hackers really were ‘White Hat’ operatives of if they found it too difficult to launder funds at scale

The Poly Network hack has nearly come to a close with a favorable result for stakeholders and users of the network as the hackers that stole close to $600 million have returned their stolen digital loot.

Poly Network confirmed that the process was underway via a Twitter post Thursday, and while on-chain data showed that the funds were being transferred Poly Network also said that they were awaiting a key from the hacker to unlock the wallet. Functionality on the network is expected to be re-enabled shortly after.

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Although the hacker or hacking group that executed the attack claims to be a White Hat hacker — meaning they don’t intend to be malicious — so far they have declined to accept a ‘bug bounty’ of nearly $500,000 for exposing flaws in the network.

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Within the White Hat world of information security professionals, bug bounties are a common practice. In exchange for proactively disclosing information about the security flaw and keeping it confidential, hackers are rewarded for their efforts.

However, security firm SlowMist which was working with Poly Network to investigate the hack said that they had discovered the hacker’s IP address and email perhaps forcing their hand to return the funds and claim that they were a White Hat group.

In response to the news, DeFi tokens were generally bullish throughout the US trading session on Friday with Ether up 7%, Cardano up 16%, and Polkadot up 7%.

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