NiceHash gets hacked. $66M USD reported stolen. Latest
As some of you may know we are hard at work on Bitcoin-related projects. We were affected by the NiceHash Mining theft. Here are the answers to some common questions about the incident.
What was stolen? Their Bitcoin wallet. All of it.
What does that mean? It’s hard to know if this means that the accumulated undeposited amounts got stolen or if ALL the customer wallets on the site were emptied.
What do I do? The wait is almost over. They will notify everyone within another 24 hours of this posting.
Do you think they had insurance or some sort of protection to get my Bitcoins back? There are hints that NiceHash mining might be insured against the bitcoin loss. According to a 2015 article the funds are fully insured by BitGo.https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache%3ALV7jr0XYDgoJ%3Ahttps%3A%2F%2Fwww.nicehash.com%2Fnews%2F31+&cd=4&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=fr#.WilcJTz_nzc.twitter
What should I do to protect myself? Use a third party wallet. A “cold wallet” keeps the Bitcoins out of the system and away from hackers. Obviously, in this case, these were active Bitcoins being used to buy hashing power or amounts being paid to the miners. As with any currency, no solution is 100% foolproof or safe over time.
Are Bitcoins safe? You are speculating. Bitcoins could well be a bubble the likes of which we haven’t seen since the whole tulip mania of 1637. As I’ve stated in articles, governments and banks will want in on the blockchain technology. They will divert attention to these new regulated currencies. How quickly this will affect the Bitcoins is anyone’s guess.
CTOBOB is available for interviews and consulting upon request.