Bitcoin ATM maker General Bytes says it is compensating its cloud hosting customers who lost funds in a March "security incident" that left its customers' hot wallets accessed.
As previously reported by Cointelegraph, a hacker obtained sensitive information, including passwords, private keys, and funds from the hot wallet on March 17 and 18 after remotely uploading a Java application to General Bytes’ terminals. The ATM maker detailed the attack in a March 23 incident report.
In a recent statement to Cointelegraph, the ATM maker said it has since taken swift action to “address the situation” and has decided to refund its “cloud hosting customers who lost funds.” "We have taken immediate steps to prevent further unauthorized access to our systems and are working tirelessly to protect our customers," General Bytes said in a statement.
It is understood that the hack resulted in at least 56 bitcoins, worth over $1.5 million at current prices, and 21.82 Ether , $37,000 at current prices, deposited in a wallet associated with the hacker. According to General Bytes, it has thoroughly assessed the damage caused by the hack and has been "working tirelessly" to improve security measures and prevent similar incidents from happening again.
In addition to offering compensation to affected customers, the ATM maker said they are encouraging all customers to migrate to self-hosted server installations, where they can use a VPN to effectively secure their server platforms.
"We are investing heavily in additional human resources to help our customers migrate their existing infrastructure to self-hosted server installations."
According to General Bytes, the hack did not affect most ATM operators with self-hosted server installations "because these customers use VPN technology to protect their infrastructure." The ATM maker first warned customers about the hack in a March 18 patch release announcement. General Btyes shut down its cloud service due to a security breach.
"General Bytes takes the security of our customers' funds and data very seriously. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and remain committed to serving our customers with integrity and professionalism." Headquartered in Prague, the company has sold more than 15,000 bitcoin ATMs to buyers in more than 149 countries around the world, according to its website.
