Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has confirmed a major security incident affecting assets worth an estimated $6.3 billion. The company said its early investigation points to a compromised laptop belonging to a DevOps engineer, which may have allowed an attacker to reach a service container and submit unauthorised withdrawal transactions.

The exchange moved quickly to limit further damage. It temporarily suspended deposits and withdrawals while security checks were carried out, revoked authorisation for the affected address, and said it was working with law enforcement and blockchain intelligence partners to trace and freeze the funds involved. Around $3 billion had been frozen on-chain at the time of its update, with partners including Tether freezing large sums linked to the incident.

What Binance says happened — and what it has not confirmed

Binance has stressed that it has found no evidence of a wallet private key leak. That distinction matters for customers, because it suggests the incident centred on access to a service system rather than on the keys that directly control customer wallets. The company has not named an attacker, explained how the laptop was first compromised, or said how long the intruder may have had access before the activity was spotted.

The investigation remains open, and Binance has promised a detailed technical post-mortem once the facts are fully verified. Until then, the figures should be treated as estimates: the total impact is described as around $6.3 billion, while the frozen total is continuing to change as partners act.

What customers should do now

Binance has said it will cover all losses from its Secure Asset Fund for Users and company funds, and that user funds are safe. Customers should still be cautious. They should only trust messages from Binance’s official channels, ignore unofficial links or requests for account details, and check their own account activity for anything unfamiliar.

Anyone who sees an unexpected withdrawal should report it through Binance’s official support route straight away and keep a record of the transaction details.

Sources: Binance; The Hacker News.