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Photo: National Tax Service |
[Alpha Biz= Kim Jisun] Cryptocurrency seized by the National Tax Service was stolen twice after authorities inadvertently disclosed sensitive access information, police said on March 2.
According to a Newsis investigation, the National Police Agency’s Cyber Terror Response Division has confirmed that the digital assets were transferred on two separate occasions and is currently tracking their whereabouts.
Police have upgraded the case from a preliminary inquiry to a formal investigation on charges of computer-related fraud following a request from the National Tax Service.
The incident traces back to Feb. 26, when the tax authority announced it had seized four USB cold wallets containing cryptocurrency from a delinquent taxpayer. In the process, it inadvertently disclosed the mnemonic recovery code in a press release.
A cold wallet refers to an offline cryptocurrency storage device. Possession of the mnemonic code allows access to the assets even without the physical wallet.
Following the disclosure, allegations emerged that approximately KRW 6.9 billion worth of cryptocurrency had been stolen. After media reports surfaced, an individual claiming to have accessed the wallet came forward, telling police that the assets were taken out of curiosity and later returned to the original wallet.
However, police later confirmed that about two and a half hours after the assets were restored, the cryptocurrency was transferred again to a different wallet by another party.
Some observers note that the affected cryptocurrency reportedly has low liquidity and is difficult to cash out, suggesting that the actual financial damage may be limited.
Alphabiz Reporter Kim Jisun(stockmk2020@alphabiz.co.kr)
