OKX Suspends DEX Aggregator After Lazarus Hack Attempt

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On March 17, OKX paused its decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator after discovering that the North Korean hacking group Lazarus was attempting to misuse its services. The exchange decided to suspend the DEX aggregator while it works on upgrades to prevent further issues, following consultations with regulators. 

OKX Pauses DEX Aggregator for Internal Review and Upgrades

OKX confirmed the suspension is for an internal review and upgrade but it did not specify when it would end. Crypto wallet services are still available to the customers, but new wallet creation will be paused in some markets during this time.

“We are temporarily pausing our DEX aggregator to address incomplete tagging on blockchain explorers while we also roll out new security features. This is to address the recent coordinated attacks by media along with unsuccessful efforts by Lazarus group to misuse our DeFi services,” it noted.

On March 11, Bloomberg reported that EU financial regulators were investigating OKX’s DEX aggregator, OKX Web3, and its wallet services for allegedly laundering funds from the Bybit hack. In response, OKX said that it had been the target of media attacks questioning its integrity. The exchange added that these attacks are happening at a time when they are actively fighting against financial crime.

OKX Denies Allegations

Bybit’s CEO, Ben Zhou, claimed nearly $100 million of the $1.5 billion stolen in the hack was funneled through OKX’s Web3 service, with some funds now untraceable. However, OKX denied the allegations, calling the report misleading. The exchange explained that, when the Bybit hack occurred, it froze any associated funds from moving to its centralized exchange (CEX) and worked on new hack detection features.

OKX Launches Hacker Detection System

OKX stated that its goal is to ensure that explorers correctly identify trades processed by the DEX, instead of mistakenly linking them to its aggregator. The exchange has introduced a “hacker address detection system” for its DEX aggregator and can track and block hacker addresses in real time on its centralized exchange. 

OKX CEO Star Xu emphasized that they have implemented several controls, including IP blocking for certain markets and real-time black address detection. OKX also clarified that the OKX Web3 DEX aggregator is not a custodian of customer assets, and its function is to provide access to liquidity across multiple protocols. However it noted that some have deliberately misrepresented its platform.