Blockstream Rejects Ransom Demand for Stolen 600 BTC
Blockstream refuses to pay up after the Liquid sidechain exploit, even as basic network transfers come back online.
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Key takeaways
- Blockstream rejected a ransom request targeting 600 remaining stolen BTC.
- Liquid has restarted normal transactions, but peg-outs remain disabled.
- Recovery operations are still underway following the recent exploit.
Blockstream isn't cutting deals with hackers. The company just flat-out rejected a ransom demand meant to recover 600 BTC stolen in a recent exploit on its Liquid sidechain.
Rather than bowing to extortion, the team is leaning on its own recovery efforts. The Liquid network has already brought standard transactions back online, though it isn't fully operational yet. Peg-outs—the mechanism that lets you move assets off Liquid and back onto the main Bitcoin blockchain—remain completely frozen while engineers work through the breach.
Why it matters
Saying no to ransoms keeps attackers from turning security flaws into easy cash, but it leaves users waiting in limbo. Sure, basic transfers work again. But locked peg-outs mean capital is effectively trapped on the sidechain for now. If you move funds off mainnet into layer-2 or sidechain systems, this is a stark reality check: bridge features can pause instantly when things go wrong.
Source: The Block
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