Cyber Incident Victim: Bter
Date:
Feb 2015
Location:
China
Summary
A Chinese Bitcoin exchange suffered a security breach resulting in the theft of 7,170 BTC valued at $1.75 million from its offline storage. The platform suspended all operations following the incident and offered a 720 BTC bounty for the stolen cryptocurrency's recovery while pledging to facilitate withdrawals of unaffected funds at a later time. This marked the second major cryptocurrency exchange compromise within a two-month period, highlighting ongoing security challenges in the sector.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 1 technique |
| Threat Actors | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 0 actors | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On February 14, 2015, China-based Bitcoin exchange Bter suffered a security breach resulting in the theft of 7,170 Bitcoin (BTC) valued at approximately $1.75 million at the time. The attackers compromised the exchange's cold wallet—a storage mechanism typically kept offline for enhanced security—and executed the theft through a single unauthorized transaction. Bter publicly disclosed the incident but provided limited technical details about the attack methodology or potential vulnerabilities exploited. The exchange immediately suspended all platform operations following the breach, freezing user access to accounts and trading functionalities indefinitely. This operational shutdown prevented further unauthorized transactions but also blocked legitimate users from accessing unaffected funds.
Bter announced plans to facilitate withdrawals of non-compromised user assets at an unspecified future date while operations remained paused. The exchange offered a 720 BTC bounty (equivalent to roughly $170,000) for information leading to the recovery of the stolen cryptocurrency. This incident marked the second major Bitcoin exchange breach within two months, following Slovenian exchange Bitstamp's January 2015 loss of $5 million in Bitcoin. The theft intensified existing industry concerns about cryptocurrency exchange security practices, particularly regarding cold storage safeguards. Bter did not disclose whether user funds or corporate reserves were primarily affected, nor did it provide timelines for service restoration or detailed forensic findings. The suspension of operations left users unable to transact or withdraw assets pending further updates from the exchange.