South Korean Prosecutors Lose Seized Bitcoin to Phishing Scam

The Gwangju Regional Prosecution Service in South Korea encountered a major Bitcoin loss, valued in the billions of Korean won, during a routine asset check.

This incident highlights potential security vulnerabilities in handling digital assets, prompting an internal investigation as digital asset custodianship practices come under scrutiny.

South Korean Prosecutors Phished for 70 Billion KRW in Bitcoin

During routine checks, the Gwangju Regional Prosecution Service discovered the Bitcoin loss traced back to a phishing incident involving USB storage. Inspections revealed access to a fraudulent website as the root cause.

The estimated value of the lost Bitcoin reaches up to 70 billion Korean won, representing significant financial loss. This underscores the challenges in managing seized cryptocurrency securely. An unnamed prosecution source from the Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office commented, “We lost Bitcoin after suffering phishing damage.”

Bitcoin’s Volatility and Custody Challenges Persist

Did you know? South Korea experienced a similar mishap in 2021, when 1,476 BTC went missing, revealing ongoing custody challenges.

Bitcoin’s value has experienced fluctuations, positioned at $88,801.00, a -0.99% movement in 24 hours. Market cap is $1.77 trillion, with a circulating supply of nearly 20 million BTC. Price data sourced from CoinMarketCap.

Experts suggest institutional processes require stricter security measures to prevent phishing and loss of assets, as covered by BeinCrypto’s insights on cryptocurrency. Evaluations continue, emphasizing the need for improvement in digital asset handling.