Hacks
Unfortunately, anything that has a connection to the Internet is subject to the danger of being hacked. With Crypto, it is no different. To be clear, Bitcoin and crypto cannot be hacked, the exchanges they reside on can. Here we go over some of the biggest hacks in the history of cryptocurrency.
MT. Gox
The first, largest and best known case is that of the platform Mt. Gox. In 2014, some 850,000 Bitcoins were stolen there, a staggering amount. A little later, another 200,000 did surface but most people lost their money with no hope of ever seeing any of it again.
Allinvain
It is not always exchanges that are hacked, every now and then individuals are also victims of hackers. Bitcointalk forum user Allinvain told us that he was a victim of hackers and that they managed to steal about 25,000 BTC in 2011. He posted everything online so that the coins could be tracked but it was never clear who had taken his Bitcoin.
Bitcoinica
This 2011 exchange was robbed a year later for 43,000 BTC, but this was not the only hack. By the time the exchange closed its doors in late 2012, a total of 101,000 BTC had been looted.
Bitfloor
This exchange was the fourth largest when it was hacked in September 2012. Here 24,000 BTC were stolen. And it may be said, their own fault. They did not use a cold wallet but hit storage, that way you are always connected to the internet and at greater risk of being hacked.
Bitfinex
In August 2016 some 160,000 Bitcoins were stolen there. Normally an exchange may then close its doors but Bitfinex was able to prevent this with a creative solution. They converted some 36% of their customers' funds into their own token which they then bought back later.
Cryptopia
In 2019, the New Zealand exchange cryptopia was hacked. $16 million worth of Ethereums and ERC-20 tokens were hacked. Here, however, there is still a small chance that the deputies will be reimbursed.
Binance
In 2019, the very largest exchange was hacked, 10,000 BTC were captured. We should add that the hack could happen by sending phishing emails to the users so the exchange itself was not hacked. Also, no one lost even a dollar because Binance is prepared for that. They have an emergency fund called SAFU which ensures that under such circumstances the platform's customers are reimbursed.
Hardware wallet
You see, it is dangerous to keep your coins on a platform, thus the golden rule. Always keep your coins on a hardware wallet, that is the only safe way where you keep control of your portfolio.