Network Security, Malware, Threat Intelligence

Over $22M stolen in Gala Games crypto heist

Cryptocurrency with blurred city abstract lights background

Blockchain gaming platform Gala Games had nearly $22.2 million worth of cryptocurrency exfiltrated following a cryptocurrency heist on the evening of May 20, reports The Record, a news site by cybersecurity firm Recorded Future.

The amount was derived from the 5,913 Ethereum the hacker received in exchange for the 600 million GALA coins stolen from the platform, according to Gala Games founder Eric Schiermeyer, who noted that the efforts of the already identified attacker to cash out nearly 4.4 billion more GALA coins had been thwarted.

"We identified the compromise and within 45 minutes we secured and removed unauthorized access to the $GALA contract," said Schiermeyer, who attributed the incident to the platform's lackluster internal controls.

Meanwhile, Gala Games was noted by blockchain security experts to have had its administrative account breached to facilitate continuous new coin minting. Such an incident comes after the theft of almost $320,000 worth of Binance Coin from the WonderHero play-to-earn game and over 600 million from the widely known Axie Infinity game.

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