Software Engineer Admits to Cryptocurrency Exchange Hacks: First Smart Contract Conviction
Summary:
Shakeeb Ahmed, a software engineer, has admitted to hacking Nirvana Finance and an undisclosed cryptocurrency exchange, marking the first-ever conviction for a smart contract violation. He exploited a weakness in one of the exchanges, triggering around $9 million in overcharges. He only returned a portion of the stolen funds, and stated he had also tapped into Nirvana Finance's flash loan after his arrest. He later cashed all of his ANA coin for a profit, leading to Nirvana Finance's shutdown. Having been released on bail, Ahmed is set for sentencing on March 13, 2024.
A Southern District Court has heard that a software engineer admitted to a count of computer fraud on December 14, linked to his hacking of Nirvana Finance and an undisclosed cryptocurrency exchange. This marks the first-ever conviction for infringing on a smart contract, according to the United States Attorney’s Office. Shakeeb Ahmed, who lined up as a high-ranking security engineer for an international tech company, was apprehended in July for an alleged hacking attack against the unnamed exchange on July 2 and 3, 2022. Subsequently, the U.S. Attorney’s Office indicated that Ahmed manipulated a weakness in a smart contract of the crypto exchange and feigned pricing data to erroneously trigger roughly $9 million worth of overcharges. The engineer subsequently gave back all but $1.5 million to the exchange, which decided not to report the incident to law enforcement. Ahmed revealed that he also tapped into the $3.49 million worth of Nirvana Finance’s flash loan only after he was seized, later that same month. He was offered a bounty of $300,000 by Nirvana for the return of the stolen funds via Twitter (now X). The court hearing saw Shakeeb Ahmed declaring his age to be 34 and confirming his guilty plea. Ahmed is said to have quarreled with Nirvana Finance over the white-hat bounty before ultimately selling his ANA coin for a profit, leading to the closure of Nirvana Finance. "Ahmed's technical expertise was used to misappropriate more than $12 million, and he attempted to hide his activities by converting stolen cryptocurrency into Monero through cryptocurrency mixers, migrating across blockchains, and leveraging overseas cryptocurrency exchanges," the report stated. Ahmed, a US national living in New York City, was released on bail following his charges in July and is scheduled to face sentencing on March 13, 2024.
Published At
12/14/2023 11:30:00 PM
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