An attacker used a cryptocurrency investor’s facial ID to forcibly unlock his wallet and transferred $4.1 million to his own address in China on Jan. 1, as reported by local news outlets
The attacker tracked down the investor at an on-site meetup organized for crypto investors. After the fact, the attacker followed the investor to the parking lot and immobilized him in his car. The attacker then forcibly used the investor’s facial recognition to unlock his phone and crypto wallet.
After converting the investor’s funds to Tether (USDT), the attacker transferred the entire amount to his own wallet, which totaled 4.1 million USDT.
Once the transfer was made, the attacker left the crime scene. The investor immediately went to the legal authorities.
Legal action
Chinese legal frameworks recognize Bitcoin as a “specified virtual commodity,” which implies that it has valuable property and can be stolen. In addition, cryptography’s essential technical attributes also place it as “valuable computer data,” which falls within the scope of a computer information system protected by criminal law.
Under these legal frameworks, even though cryptocurrencies are banned in China, the attacker is still considered a thief. Prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for the attacker and will sentence him to four years in prison and a fine of $1,462.33 (10,000 Chinese yuan) or two years in jail and a fine of $877.40 (6,000 Chinese yuan).
Referring to this case, Chinese law enforcement warned crypto investors not to flaunt their wealth, use coin logos to attract attention, and go to remote locations to meet strangers.
