As a seasoned crypto investor with over a decade of experience under my belt, I can’t help but feel a mix of emotions reading about the arrest of SK Masud Alam, the suspected mastermind behind the WazirX heist. While it’s heartening to see progress in bringing these criminals to justice, the saga serves as a stark reminder of the risks we all face in this wild frontier of digital finance.


It’s said that Indian police have apprehended a suspected individual linked to a significant incident involving the popular cryptocurrency exchange, WazirX.

4 months have passed since the initial report of an event that led to over $230 million in cryptocurrency being lost, and it is now when this person has been apprehended.

Two Suspects Identified

As an analyst, I’ve uncovered some intriguing details about a recent incident. The East Midnapore district of West Bengal was the location where authorities executed an arrest. The individual in question, known as SK Masud Alam, is suspected to have created an account on WazirX, using the alias “Souvik Mondal.” Remarkably, this account was later sold through Telegram to a person named M. Hassan, who I assume is an accomplice.

As a researcher, I’ve come across claims suggesting that the individual purportedly involved in criminal activities with Alam may have utilized an account as a means to initiate an assault on a Mumbai-based cryptocurrency exchange. The focus of this attack appears to be the platform’s crypto storage systems.

Investigators from the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) team of the Delhi Police disclosed that the culprits initially infiltrated the platform’s digital wallet with immediate access. Subsequently, they tried to undermine the safety measures of its cold storage wallet, which is usually more secure as it’s kept offline.

To untangle the intricate chain of transactions linked to the theft, investigators seized three computers that had been utilized by the main approvers of the exchange’s multi-signature wallets. Law enforcement officials are eager to figure out if and how these systems might have been taken advantage of or circumvented during the incident.

According to India Today’s report, Alam’s arrest document highlighted the difficulties experienced by investigators in identifying and apprehending the culprits, particularly due to a lack of assistance from Liminal Custody, who were tasked with safeguarding WazirX’s digital wallets.

As a concerned investor, I’ve been following the developments surrounding Liminal closely. Despite numerous requests for essential information, they seem to have fallen short, which has sparked questions about their commitment to security procedures and operational transparency. Moreover, the detectives hint that Liminal’s involvement in the WazirX breach might face further examination as new evidence unfolds.

In contrast to Liminal, WazirX has willingly collaborated with the investigation thus far, giving the police essential information such as KYC records and detailed transaction histories. These details have reportedly played a crucial role in piecing together the chain of events surrounding and following the event.

Findings Differ From Forensic Analysts’ Claims

Besides enlisting law enforcement, WazirX also brought on board numerous blockchain investigation specialists to aid in the identification of those involved in the security incident.

Initially, certain experts suggested that the attack on WazirX might have been orchestrated by hackers from North Korea. However, Elliptic, a company specializing in on-chain diagnostics, stated that their examination of the attack’s patterns and methods hinted at potential involvement from actors originating in North Korea.

In a July 18 post on their platform, well-known cryptocurrency detective ZachXBT suggested that the characteristics of the attack appeared similar to those typically associated with the Lazarus Group.

The outfit, linked to the regime in Pyongyang, has been accused of stealing more than $3 billion from the crypto industry in the last six years, including $600 million from the Ronin Bridge.

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2024-11-14 20:06