Cryptocurrency service provider Poly Networks has one or the other hackersThose who had their systems compromised a few days ago had promised half a million dollars as a reward for uncovering an IT vulnerability. The unusual offer was preceded by a turbulent week. strangers at first Over $600 million in digital currencies Theft from poly network, but started the next day to return the loot in pieces.

The perpetrator(s) used comment fields in the transfer instructions to explain and justify their point of view. The texts gave the impression that it was a hacker working alone. Among other things, this person published a kind of FAQ in which he explained the background and process of the crime.

Late on Thursday, the aggrieved company reacted in the same way, namely by using the comment area of ​​the crypto transaction. sent a message to the offender. It read: “Since we believe your action is white hat, we plan to give you a $500,000 bug bounty after you complete your refund.” Bug bounties are usually paid to the manufacturer for reporting security vulnerabilities. The company also assured that “you will not be held accountable for this incident.”

The perpetrators responded quickly, publishing the reply only four minutes after receiving the offer: “Polly offered a reward, but I didn’t respond. Instead, I’ll send all your money back.”

According to Tom Robinson, chief scientist at blockchain security firm Elliptic, this withdrawal process is now largely complete. Only $33 million worth of cryptocurrency, which was frozen shortly after the hack, has yet to be transferred back.

The perpetrators or criminals have meanwhile announced that they want to compensate the “unexpected victims” of their digital thefts. In a message they announced that they would consider using the “limited reward” offered by the Poly Network. The main source of compensation should be charity. So far the criminal or criminals have earned about $ 4,000 in this way, IT expert Robinson writes.