Bitcoinica Hot Wallet Hack

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This shows a definite need for hot wallet insurance. Reduction in the level of funds stored in hot wallets would reduce the risk.

This exchange or platform is based in New Zealand, or the incident targeted people primarily in New Zealand.

About Bitcoinica

"Today, we have discovered a suspicious Bitcoin transaction that doesn't seem to be initiated by any one of the company owners..." speculation has been that A. Vinnik was involved (same as Mt Gox, BTC-e) “On May 6, 2012, bitcoin exchange Bitcoinica announced that their hot wallet had been hacked. The exchange told users that they had “discovered a suspicious bitcoin transaction that doesn’t seem to be initiated by any one of the company owners.” The hot wallet hack was initially suspected to be linked to Bitcoinica owner A. Vinnik, leading some to suspect it was an exit scam.”

This exchange or platform is based in New Zealand, or the incident targeted people primarily in New Zealand.

The background of the exchange platform, service, or individuals involved, as it would have been seen or understood at the time of the events.

Include:

Known history of when and how the service was started.
What problems does the company or service claim to solve?
What marketing materials were used by the firm or business?
Audits performed, and excerpts that may have been included.
Business registration documents shown (fake or legitimate).
How were people recruited to participate?
Public warnings and announcements prior to the event.

Don't Include:

Any wording which directly states or implies that the business is/was illegitimate, or that a vulnerability existed.
Anything that wasn't reasonably knowable at the time of the event.

There could be more than one section here. If the same platform is involved with multiple incidents, then it can be linked to a main article page.

The Reality

This sections is included if a case involved deception or information that was unknown at the time. Examples include:

When the service was actually started (if different than the "official story").
Who actually ran a service and their own personal history.
How the service was structured behind the scenes. (For example, there was no "trading bot".)
Details of what audits reported and how vulnerabilities were missed during auditing.

What Happened

The specific events of the loss and how it came about. What actually happened to cause the loss and some of the events leading up to it.

Key Event Timeline - Bitcoinica Hot Wallet Hack
Date	Event	Description
May 1st, 2012 12:00:08 AM	Main Event	Expand this into a brief description of what happened and the impact. If multiple lines are necessary, add them here.

Total Amount Lost

The total amount lost has been estimated at $91,000 USD.

How much was lost and how was it calculated? If there are conflicting reports, which are accurate and where does the discrepancy lie?

Immediate Reactions

How did the various parties involved (firm, platform, management, and/or affected individual(s)) deal with the events? Were services shut down? Were announcements made? Were groups formed?