VERDICT —OUT OF SCOPE
Root cause is private-key / signer compromise — the on-chain contract behaved exactly as written. No pre-deployment source audit or bytecode review reaches the key-custody perimeter; this is operational-security territory (HSM/MPC hygiene, key rotation, hot-wallet isolation). Bytecode would show nothing wrong.
▰ METHOD
PRIVATE KEY
PRIVATE-KEY
Root cause
Root-cause analysis not yet published. The incident description below contains all currently available signal — review the attack transaction directly for definitive forensics.
Forensic narrative
Bitstamp reported that multiple operating wallets were damaged, resulting in the loss of 19,000 bitcoins. The company was hacked by multiple phishing attacks in the months before the attack. An employee downloaded a malicious file that allowed an attacker to access the password of the company's hot wallet and the server including the wallet.dat file. Attack method (per SlowMist): Phishing attack. Reported loss: 19,000 BTC.
Primary source
https://www.coindesk.com/markets/2015/01/05/bitstamp-claims-5-million-lost-in-hot-wallet-hack/ ↗Sourced from
slowmist
Technical record
- chain
- —
- protocol
- Bitstamp
- bug_class
- private-key
- date_occurred
- 2015-01-05
- loss_usd
- —
- source_id
- sm:bitstamp::2015-01-05
Related — same bug class· private-key