Oops: South Korean cops lost $5M in seized crypto after leaking wallet password

In a shocking turn of events, South Korean authorities found themselves in hot water after a press release highlighting their successful seizure of $5.6 million in cryptocurrency from tax evaders inadvertently led to a significant security breach. The police had shared images alongside the announcement, which unfortunately revealed critical information that allowed a thief to swiftly siphon off the seized assets. Despite the quick removal of the press release, the damage was already done, with local media and tech outlets quickly disseminating news of the theft. The leaked images included a handwritten note located next to a Ledger device—an essential tool known as a "cold wallet" for securely storing cryptocurrencies offline. This note contained a mnemonic recovery phrase that effectively served as a master key, permitting unauthorized access to the wallet without any need for additional PINs or permissions. Blockchain analyst Cho Jae-woo reported that the wallet contained approximately 4 million PRTG (Pre-Retogeum) tokens, valued around $4.8 million, at the time of the theft. According to data from Etherscan, the thief initially deposited a small amount of ETH into the wallet to cover transaction fees before executing three transactions to transfer out the 4 million PRTG tokens. In response to the incident, officials from the National Tax Service of South Korea issued a public apology, expressing deep regret over the lapse that led to the exposure of the seized assets. The police admitted that their intention to make the press release more visually appealing contributed to the oversight and confirmed that an investigation is underway with national police to trace the stolen funds and recover what was lost.