Law Enforcement Arrests Suspects in $14.4M Holograph Heist

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Hassan Shittu

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Hassan Shittu

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Hassan, a Cryptonews.com journalist with 6+ years of experience in Web3 journalism, brings deep knowledge across Crypto, Web3 Gaming, NFTs, and Play-to-Earn sectors. His work has appeared in...

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August 15, 2024 09:10 EDT

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After a two-month international investigation, law enforcement agencies have successfully apprehended multiple suspects involved in the Holograph hack, which occurred on June 13th, 2024.

The hack resulted in the theft of approximately $14.4 million worth of HLG tokens, leading to significant market disruptions.

The arrests were made in Italy through a coordinated effort involving France’s Office for the Prevention of Cybercrime (OFAC), the Italian Directorate of Anti-Mafia Investigations, Europol, and the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service (RCIPS).

The suspects, awaiting extradition to France, are believed to be responsible for the Holograph’s crypto thefts. French authorities have yet to disclose the suspects’ identities as the investigation is ongoing.

Holograph Hack Suspect Arrested in Italy

The arrests mark a critical juncture in the ongoing investigation into the Holograph hack.

The suspects’ apprehension followed a relentless pursuit by law enforcement agencies in multiple countries. The case has now become more complex and international in nature.

Significant assets and electronic equipment related to the hack have been frozen and seized as part of the arrests, potentially leading to the partial recovery of the stolen funds.

The suspects, whose identities remain confidential due to legal restrictions in France, were apprehended in Italy with the support of French authorities.

According to La Parisien, the suspects are expected to be extradited to France in the coming week, where they will face charges related to the cyberattack.

The French Office for the Prevention of Cybercrime (OFAC), which has been at the forefront of this investigation, confirmed that the operation is ongoing and that additional information will be released as the legal proceedings advance.

A Possible End to Decyphering a $14.4 Million Theft

The Holograph hack began on June 13, 2024, when attackers exploited vulnerabilities in the Holograph Protocol, an omnichain tokenization platform, to mint 1 billion HLG tokens, resulting in approximately $14.4 million theft.

The attack severely impacted the platform, which allows for the tokenization of assets across multiple blockchain networks. In the immediate aftermath, the value of its native HLG token plummeted nearly 80%.

The hackers drained the tokens through nine transactions, as detailed by Etherscan, and subsequently converted them into Tether (USDT).

The hack’s impact was financial and reputational, as it exposed critical vulnerabilities within Holograph’s infrastructure.

An internal investigation in collaboration with blockchain security firm Halborn revealed that a former disgruntled contractor had exploited unauthorized admin access to carry out the attack.

This individual had contributed to the protocol, making over 100 contributions to Holograph the previous year, giving them the knowledge and access needed to execute the heist.

The contractor meticulously planned the breach, leveraging admin access to Holograph Protocol V1 contracts as a backdoor to mint the tokens.

Following the attack, Holograph took immediate steps to mitigate the damage, including patching the exploit and working with exchange partners to freeze the malicious accounts.

The platform also re-enabled bridging on its V2 protocol and initiated a burn plan to restore the maximum supply of HLG tokens to its original 10 billion.

However, despite these efforts, the hack had already caused significant damage to the platform’s market position and user trust.

The successful arrests of the suspects involved in the Holograph hack represent a significant victory for law enforcement agencies handling the case.

In the coming weeks, the focus will likely shift to recovering the stolen funds and implementing additional security measures to safeguard the Holograph ecosystem.