Iran’s largest crypto exchange, Nobitex, has suffered a massive $81.7 million hack, with a pro-Israel hacker group claiming responsibility.
$81M Stolen in Sophisticated Wallet Breach
Nobitex, the leading cryptocurrency exchange in Iran, was hacked for over $81 million in digital assets, according to blockchain investigator ZachXBT. The attack exploited hot wallets on the Tron network and Ethereum-compatible chains using vanity addresses—a rare and personalized form of wallet manipulation.
One of the hacker’s wallet addresses included the phrase “TKFuckiRGCTerroristsNoBiTEX”, while another ended in “FFFFfFfFFFFDead,” suggesting a politically charged motive.
Hot Wallet Exploit Triggers Emergency Lockdown
The Nobitex team confirmed “unauthorized access” to its hot wallets and said those wallets were immediately suspended. The exchange assured users that their cold wallet assets remain safe and that all losses will be covered through its insurance fund and internal reserves.
Blockchain security expert Hakan Unal from Cyvers said the attack likely stemmed from a critical failure in access controls, which allowed hackers to drain hot wallets across multiple blockchains.
Interestingly, the stolen funds remain untouched on-chain, raising speculation about the attackers’ next move.
Pro-Israel Hacker Group Takes Responsibility
A hacker group named “Gonjeshke Darande” has claimed responsibility for the breach. In a statement on X (formerly Twitter), the group labeled Nobitex as a “key tool for sanctions evasion and terror financing” by the Iranian regime.
The group threatened to release Nobitex’s source code and internal files within 24 hours and warned users that remaining funds on the platform were still at risk.
The group also alleged that employment at Nobitex is considered military service in Iran, further underlining the exchange’s significance to the government.
Hack Follows Rising Israel-Iran Conflict
The breach coincides with rising military conflict between Israel and Iran. On June 13, Israel carried out its largest strike on Iranian territory since the 1980s, following escalating missile exchanges that have left over 224 Iranians and 24 Israelis dead, according to The Guardian.
The Nobitex attack appears to be the latest digital front in this geopolitical confrontation.
Crypto Hacks Surge Past $2.1B in 2025
This incident adds to a growing list of major crypto hacks in 2025. According to security firm CertiK, over $2.1 billion has already been stolen this year—primarily through wallet compromises, mismanaged keys, and social engineering tactics like address poisoning.
Ronghui Gu, CertiK co-founder, noted that psychological manipulation attacks now surpass traditional protocol-level exploits, making individual wallets the most vulnerable target in crypto.
