Ukrainian Steals Bitcoin From Russian Darknet Market, Donates To Charity CryptoBlog

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A Ukrainian man living in the United States allegedly hacked into a major drug market on the Russian dark web, embezzling some of his crypto revenue. The man says he donated the digital money stolen from the illicit website to an organization providing humanitarian aid in his war-torn homeland.

Wisconsin resident with Ukrainian roots hacks Russian dark web market Solaris

Ukrainian-born cyber-intelligence expert Alex Holden, who moved from Kyiv as a teenager in the 1980s and now lives in Mequon, Wisconsin, claims he hacked Solaris, one of the biggest Russia’s online drug markets, informs Forbes in a report.

Supported by his team at Hold Security, he was able to get his hands on some of the bitcoins sent to dealers and owners of the darknet site. The cryptocurrency, worth more than $25,000, was later transferred to Enjoying Life, a charitable foundation based in the Ukrainian capital.

Without revealing exactly how he did it, Holden explained that he took control of much of the Internet infrastructure behind Solaris, including some administrator accounts, obtained the website source code, and a database of its users and drop-off locations for drug deliveries.

For some time, the Ukrainian and his colleagues also had access to the “main wallet” of the market. It was used by buyers and dealers to deposit and withdraw funds and functioned as the platform’s crypto exchange, the article details.

Given the rapid turnover, the wallet rarely had more than 3 BTC at a time. Holden managed to take 1.6 BTC and send it to Enjoying Life. Hold Security donated an additional $8,000 to the charity, which helps people affected by war in Ukraine.

Solaris Linked to ‘Patriotic’ Russian Hacking Collective Killnet

The Solaris darknet market is suspected of having ties to the Killnet hacking team, which after Moscow launched its invasion in late February became one of Russia’s ‘patriotic’ hacker groups vowing to target Ukrainians and their supporters.

Killnet has also carried out a number of attacks in the United States, including on airport and state government websites, as well as the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. It was reportedly featured in the Eurovision Song Contest, the Estonian government and the Italian National Institute of Health.

The group has also been accused of attacking Rutor, Solaris’ main rival, which became Russia’s top underground drug market after Hydra shut down last spring. According to US cybersecurity firm Zerofox, Solaris was paying Killnet for DDoS services.

Besides the battlefield, Russia and Ukraine have also clashed in the online space, with the Kyiv government recruiting experts for its own cyberforce. The special unit was tasked with identifying and preventing Russian attacks, as well as hacking.

Successes such as those of Russia’s largest bank, Sber, and the Moscow Stock Exchange have been attributed to Ukraine’s IT army. Social media accounts associated with the hacktivist collective Anonymous have claimed numerous other attacks.

Tags in this story Alex Holden, Attack, Bitcoin, BTC, Charity, conflict, Crypto, Cryptocurrencies, Cryptocurrency, dark web, darknet, Donate, Enjoy Life, Hack, Hackers, Hacking, hit, Hold Security , Holden, Hydra, invasion, market, Marketplace, Russia, Russian, Rutor, Site, Solaris, Ukraine, Ukrainian, Wallet, War, website

What do you think of Alex Holden’s attack on the Russian darknet market Solaris? Let us know in the comments section below.

Lubomir Tassev

Lubomir Tassev is a tech-savvy Eastern European journalist who loves Hitchens’ quote: Being a writer is who I am, rather than what I do. Besides crypto, blockchain and fintech, international politics and economics are two other sources of inspiration.

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