2026-01-17 20:24:46

A major security breach occurred on January 10th, 2026, resulting in approximately $282 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin being stolen from a hardware wallet through social engineering tactics. This represented one of the largest direct hardware wallet compromises in recent memory.

The attacker swiftly converted the stolen assets into Monero via instant swap services, a move that immediately affected market liquidity across multiple trading pairs. The rapid influx of $XMR into circulation caused noticeable price volatility, as the large volume spike disrupted normal trading patterns. The use of privacy coins like Monero for fund concealment highlights an evolving challenge in tracking and recovering stolen cryptocurrency assets.

This incident underscores the ongoing vulnerabilities in hardware wallet security protocols, particularly when combined with sophisticated social engineering approaches targeting wallet holders. Despite hardware wallets being considered one of the safest storage methods, attackers continue to exploit human factors rather than technical weaknesses.

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MentalWealthHarvester

· 8h ago

Hardware wallets can also be compromised through social engineering, indicating that no matter how secure something is, it can't withstand foolish people.

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LiquidationKing

· 8h ago

28 million gone, hardware wallets are no longer safe. Ultimately, it's just people being too naive. This wave of hardware wallets really got compromised; a single social engineering attack and it's over. And it's Monero again... Privacy coins are basically tailor-made for hackers. Human nature is always the biggest security flaw; no matter how advanced the technology is, it’s useless. 282 million evaporated directly—how many people are losing sleep over this? Social engineering tricks are truly the best; a hundred times easier than cracking a password. Talking about the safest storage method, but it still gets stolen? LOL

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BlindBoxVictim

· 8h ago

ngl This 282 million theft is purely a victory for social engineering. No matter how secure the hardware wallet, it can't withstand human weakness. --- It's the same Monero money laundering scheme again. Privacy coins are really a thief's best friend. --- Laughing to death. Spending money on the most secure hardware wallet is useless. The key is to be cautious of the people around you. --- This incident proves a truth: no matter how advanced the technology, it can't beat social engineering. People are the biggest bug. --- Look at this operation... directly swap to XMR and it's untraceable. That's the real dream of a cypherpunk. --- I just want to ask, who the hell falls into such a big social engineering trap? How careless can they be? --- Hardware wallets are not foolproof. Honestly, you still have to rely on your own brain and not get fooled.

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RooftopVIP

· 9h ago

280 million dollars gone, that's why I never click on unfamiliar links... Hardware wallets can't save you either; the key issue is that people are just too careless. Social engineering is way more terrifying than technical vulnerabilities. It's Monero again, once you use privacy coins, there's no way to trace it, really clever. This guy was definitely phished; in my opinion, no matter how secure the wallet is, you can't stop yourself from screwing up.

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UncleWhale

· 9h ago

NGL social engineering can scam away 280 million, which shows that no matter how secure a wallet is, human brain vulnerabilities can't be blocked... --- Monero's operation was perfect, directly bypassing on-chain tracking. This is true invisibility cloak. --- Hard wallets are just compromised now, so what can we ordinary people trust... --- Still playing social engineering in 2026? How effective is this trick... --- Switch to XMR and it's over, making tracking extremely difficult. Exchanges must be stunned. --- The biggest lesson is that no matter how secure the technology is, it can't withstand a phone call... --- 282 million turned into privacy coins. With such market volatility, this move was really ruthless. --- Hard wallets aren't really hard; social engineering is the real king. Should I laugh or cry about this? --- The key is that social engineering can't be prevented. No matter how good the technology, a user's one sentence can expose everything. --- Privacy coins are like modern underground banks. Thieves love them.

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RugPullAlarm

· 9h ago

282 million USD directly injected into Monero. This trick is also very old-fashioned; the focus on the chain was lost in a second. Our "safest" method as retail investors is just a joke. Social engineering this move, no matter how secure the wallet, can't be stopped. Ultimately, it's human nature that is the easiest to exploit.

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