CZ Promises Full Recovery of $7M Trust Wallet Hack on Christmas Day

Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has reassured users that their funds will be recovered after a Trust Wallet hack on Christmas Day resulted in losses of millions of dollars.

The hack, which had been planned since early December, targeted Trust Wallet’s desktop browser extension and resulted in losses of about $7 million on Christmas Day. Trust Wallet said the attack affected version 2.68 of its browser extension and urged users to update to version 2.89 to remain secure.

The hack is part of a trend of attacks on crypto wallets, with personal wallet attacks accounting for 37% of all stolen crypto, excluding Bybit’s hack in February.

Experts Suspect Insider Role in Trust Wallet Hack

Security expert Yu Xian says the Trust Wallet hack was planned weeks in advance. The attacker started preparing on December 8, added a hidden backdoor on December 22, and began stealing funds on Christmas Day, which is when the attack was discovered.

Xian also noted the attacker knew Trust Wallet’s code very well, which allowed them to add a hidden backdoor that collects users’ sensitive personal information.

Some experts believe the hack may involved an insider because the attacker was able to upload a new version of the Trust Wallet extension. Blockchain adviser Anndy Lian said this kind of hack doesn’t look normal and strongly suggests insider involvement.

Trust Wallet Hack Exposes Browser Wallet Risks

The hack has renewed concerns about browser-based crypto wallets, which are convenient to use but can be risky, especially when updated.

Security experts still advise people with large crypto holdings to use hardware wallets, which keep private keys offline and safer.

The incident highlights the truth that blockchain is secure but the software people use to access it is often the weak point.