Interest in Bitcoin is increasing globally. More and more people are willing to participate in Bitcoin trading and mining. However, Bitcoin history shows that it is not always as safe as we would like it to be. Let’s take a look at some major Bitcoin hacks.
Allinvain
Allinvain is a nickname of a user on BitcoinTalk forums. Basically, he was the first one to experience a major Bitcoin loss. He lost 25,000 bitcoins, all together it was worth around $500,000. The user believed that someone hacked into his computer to steal BTC.
Mt Gox
Shortly after Allinvain’s case, the next hack attempt happened. Mt Gox was one of the biggest exchanges that provided a trade between Bitcoin and fiat money. Hackers compromised its website and started to sell Bitcoins. Their actions made the price go down dramatically. However, attackers did not pay attention to the $1000 limit Mt Gox had. Nonetheless, that hack attack had an important influence on BTC.
Other exchanges
Exchanges are being attacked by hackers quite often.
In 2012 Bitfloor suffered a terrible attack and lost 24,000 BTC (around $250,000). Unfortunately, this exchange was not able to survive the attack and was closed in 2013.
In 2015 Bitstamp exchange was hacked. It lost approximately 19,000 BTC (around $5 million).
In 2016 Bitfinex also lost 120,000 BTC (around $77 million) to hackers.
Twitter hack
The last attack happened in one of the biggest social nets. Twitter became a part of the latest attackers’ actions. The most significant and world-famous accounts promoted Bitcoin scam for several hours.
Anti-hack protection
The most important question is how to protect your Bitcoin savings from upcoming attacks. Here are some basic things that may help you to be safe:
Allinvain
Allinvain is a nickname of a user on BitcoinTalk forums. Basically, he was the first one to experience a major Bitcoin loss. He lost 25,000 bitcoins, all together it was worth around $500,000. The user believed that someone hacked into his computer to steal BTC.
Mt Gox
Shortly after Allinvain’s case, the next hack attempt happened. Mt Gox was one of the biggest exchanges that provided a trade between Bitcoin and fiat money. Hackers compromised its website and started to sell Bitcoins. Their actions made the price go down dramatically. However, attackers did not pay attention to the $1000 limit Mt Gox had. Nonetheless, that hack attack had an important influence on BTC.
Other exchanges
Exchanges are being attacked by hackers quite often.
In 2012 Bitfloor suffered a terrible attack and lost 24,000 BTC (around $250,000). Unfortunately, this exchange was not able to survive the attack and was closed in 2013.
In 2015 Bitstamp exchange was hacked. It lost approximately 19,000 BTC (around $5 million).
In 2016 Bitfinex also lost 120,000 BTC (around $77 million) to hackers.
Twitter hack
The last attack happened in one of the biggest social nets. Twitter became a part of the latest attackers’ actions. The most significant and world-famous accounts promoted Bitcoin scam for several hours.
Anti-hack protection
The most important question is how to protect your Bitcoin savings from upcoming attacks. Here are some basic things that may help you to be safe:
- Use trustworthy antivirus software
- Choose your exchange service wisely
Make sure that it is properly registered and has a policy for emergency situations.
- Be careful when choosing a Bitcoin wallet
There are lots of options to choose from now. Check the history of the service, make sure it suits your purposes.
- Use different wallets
Avoid putting all your savings in one place.
- Keep your private keys safe
It is important to remember that the loss of private keys will lead to the loss of coins.
- Use a multifactor authentication
Multifactor authentication links your account to your mobile phone.
- Do not believe in easy money
We all should remember that “there's no such thing as a free lunch” but there are a lot of impersonators & scammers.