Crypto exchanges OKEx and Bitfinex hit by DDoS attacks, no users impacted

Quick Take

  • Crypto exchanges OKEx and Bitfinex were both hit by DDoS attacks, but they said no users were impacted
  • A DDoS attack is a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic of a targeted website with a flood of Internet traffic

Crypto exchanges OKEx and Bitfinex both experienced Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks in the last 24 hours, but say no users are affected.

An OKEx spokesperson told The Block that the attack was a malicious attempt to disrupt normal traffic of the exchange's server with a flood of Internet traffic. OKEx CEO Jay Hao described the attack as "large-scale," on his Weibo account, saying that competitor(s) was behind it.

OKEx's technical support team spotted the attack and reacted "quickly" to resolve the issue, said the spokesperson. "With our 24/7 technical support and monitoring, it was properly handled within a short period of time, and no client is impacted."

"We will continue getting well-prepared in protecting users," the spokesperson added. 

Crypto exchange Bitfinex also was targeted by a DDoS attack today. Bitfinex CTO Paolo Ardoino said the attack was "very sophisticated," meaning there was a "deep preparation" by the attacker.



"All funds remained safe during the whole attack and high-trading-performance is now fully re-established," Ardoino added.

Several exchanges in the past have been a target of DDoS attack, including Huobi and now-defunct platform BTC-e. US authorities seized BTC-e in 2017 on money laundering charges and also arrested the exchange's suspected operator Alexander Vinnik. Last month, French officials also charged Vinnik with multiple counts, including extortion and money laundering.

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UPDATES (4:35 am and 5:50 am EST): This story has been updated with information from Bitfinex.


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About Author

Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.