KyberSwap Hacker Sends Message: Negotiations Hinge on Civility

Threats and Demands

The hacker responsible for the $46 million crypto theft against KyberSwap has issued a warning to the exchange's executives, tokenholders, and liquidity providers. In an on-chain message, the exploiter expressed frustration with the hostility they have faced and threatened to delay negotiations until a more civil environment is established. The hacker plans to release a statement regarding a potential treaty with KyberSwap, but only if the hostilities cease.

Initial Bounty Deal

KyberSwap initially proposed a bounty deal to the hacker, offering to return 90% of the stolen funds in exchange for keeping the remaining 10%. However, when the hacker did not comply immediately, KyberSwap threatened to pursue legal action. They reached out to law enforcement and cybersecurity agencies, claiming to have the means to track down the hacker.

Recovery Efforts and Public Bounty Program

Following the exploit, KyberSwap managed to recover $4.67 million from operators of front-running bots. These bots had extracted approximately $5.7 million in crypto from KyberSwap pools on the Polygon and Avalanche networks. Additionally, KyberSwap announced plans to launch a public bounty program to incentivize individuals who can provide information leading to the hacker's arrest and the recovery of user funds.

Waiting for a Response

The KyberSwap team has not yet responded to the hacker's latest message and is presumably awaiting the proposed treaty. The hacker's previous message on a social media platform has gone unanswered, leaving the community curious about the next steps in this ongoing saga.

The Attack and KyberSwap

The hack involved an "infinite money glitch" and a carefully engineered smart contract exploit across multiple networks that implement KyberSwap pools. Funds were exploited from Avalanche, Polygon, Ethereum, and layer-2 networks such as Arbitrum, Optimism, and Base. KyberSwap operates on Kyber Network, a blockchain-based liquidity hub that facilitates token exchange across different blockchains without the need for intermediaries.