Following a recent hack that led to a $3 million loss for 11 users, the telegram-based crypto trading bot Banana Gun announced its commitment to refunding all affected users from its treasury without the need to sell any tokens. This rapid response from the platform has restored confidence in the community, leading to a 7% surge in the value of the native BANANA token following the announcement.
Banana Gun Hack: How Did $3 Million Get Lost?
The hack targeted experienced crypto traders with a significant presence on social media platforms. Users noticed manual transfers of ethereum (ETH) from their wallets while interacting with Banana Gun's bots, impacting both the ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) and Solana versions of the bot. Victims received real-time notifications from the bot as their wallets were drained by the attackers.
In response to the breach, the Banana Gun team promptly shut down the bot to prevent further losses and conducted a thorough investigation with the assistance of external security experts. They discovered that the attackers exploited a vulnerability in the telegram message oracle to initiate manual ETH transfers from users' wallets.
The attackers' strategy of manual transfers, specifically targeting seasoned traders, indicated a well-planned and targeted operation. The victims' profile suggested that the attackers carefully selected their targets based on trading expertise and public visibility.
Security Enhancements Restore User’s Confidence
Following the investigation, Banana Gun implemented vital security measures to prevent future breaches, including a two-hour transfer delay and two-factor authentication (2FA) for all transfers. The team extensively reviewed and redeployed the bot's infrastructure on new servers to eliminate vulnerabilities.
These proactive security enhancements have made Banana Gun's systems more resilient and capable of withstanding potential attacks. Planned penetration testing and additional audits have further bolstered user confidence in the platform.
The refund promise from Banana Gun, coupled with the security updates, led to a 7% increase in the price of BANANA tokens, demonstrating the positive market response to the platform's crisis management.
In a similar vein, other crypto platforms have also faced security challenges this month. BingX, a Singapore-based exchange, disclosed a security breach resulting in a $43 million loss, while Indonesian exchange Indodax fell victim to a hack, losing approximately $22 million in digital assets from hot wallets.
The hacked tokens from these exchanges were swiftly converted into other cryptocurrencies, complicating the recovery process. Despite the challenges, both exchanges have taken steps to enhance their security measures and resume operations to regain user trust.
