Seed Phrase Leak: South Korea’s Tax Agency Blunders, Losing $4.8M in Seized Tokens 🇰🇷🚨
Institutional security just hit a new low. In a shocking oversight, the South Korean National Tax Service (NTS) accidentally exposed a private seed phrase in an official press release, leading to a swift $4.8 Million theft.
What Happened?
The agency was boasting about its successful seizure of 8.1 billion won (~$5.6M) from tax debtors. To illustrate the win, they published photos of the evidence: 4 USB drives and—unbelievably—a piece of paper with the 24-word recovery phrase clearly visible and unblurred.
The $4.8M "Speedrun":
On-chain sleuths and opportunistic "bots" didn't miss a beat. Within hours of the release:
An unknown wallet deposited a small amount of ETH into the leaked address (to cover gas fees).
4 million PRTG tokens (worth roughly $4.8M at the time) were drained in three quick transactions.
Is the Money Gone?
While the tokens were successfully moved, there's a catch: PRTG is a low-liquidity asset. Dumping $4.8M worth of it without crashing the price to zero is nearly impossible, meaning the thief might be holding a "million-dollar bag" they can't easily cash out.
A Pattern of Blunders:
This isn't South Korea's first "slip of the finger" this month. Just weeks ago, a Bithumb employee accidentally airdropped 2,000 BTC (worth billions) to hundreds of users instead of a 2,000 won (~$1.50) reward, causing a localized flash crash.
The Takeaway:
If government agencies and major exchanges can make these "rookie" mistakes, it’s a stark reminder: Your keys, your crypto. Their keys, everyone’s crypto.
Is this the biggest "facepalm" in crypto history, or does the Bithumb $44B error still take the crown? Let’s discuss in the comments! 👇
#SouthKorea
#CryptoNews #SeedPhrase #SecurityBreach #Bithumb #TaxAgency #PRTG
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