Ivan Bianco, a Brazilian blockchain gaming YouTuber, suffered a devastating crypto security lapse this week when he accidentally showed his wallet seed phrases during a livestream. Within minutes, unknown thieves stole nearly $60,000 worth of cryptocurrency and NFTs from Bianco’s exposed wallets.
The incident occurred on Bianco’s YouTube channel, Fraternidade Crypto, which focuses on blockchain gaming and has over 34,000 subscribers. During a recent livestream, Bianco opened a document that contained the sensitive seed phrases for his cryptocurrency wallets. With the keys to access his wallets, hackers acted quickly to drain funds totaling 86,600 MATIC (worth $50,800), 3.35 ETH ($5,750), and smaller amounts of other tokens.
A visibly distraught Bianco explained to his viewers what transpired in a follow-up livestream. He had tried in vain to move his funds to new wallets after realizing his mistake, but it was too late. The theft unfolded in real time as the hacker addresses containing his holdings grew in value on the blockchain.
In a surprising twist, an unknown person contacted Bianco on Discord, admitted to stealing the funds, and expressed regret over the act. Shortly after, the largest wallet holding 86,600 MATIC returned the tokens to Bianco. However, around $10,000 worth of crypto remained stolen in other wallets.
While grateful to have recovered a significant portion of his lost assets, Bianco hopes his experience serves as a cautionary tale for others. “I won’t say [the thief’s] name, because he returned most of it,” Bianco told reporters. “But I hope what happened shows people they need to keep their seed phrases safe.”
The incident highlights the need for proper crypto security, as seed phrases provide full access to wallets if compromised. Bianco’s blunder allowed thieves to instantly seize his unlocked digital fortune, though thankfully he managed to recover some of the ransacked riches.
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