- AVAX’s price has grown since the acquittal of the Platypus hackers.
- Despite this, sentiment around the token fell.
A French court recently acquitted two hackers involved in the Platypus stablecoin project on Avalanche [AVAX]. This came after a flash loan attack in February, which caused an $8.5 million loss to the Platypus stablecoin, USP.
The state of AVAX
AVAX has witnessed a rise of 3.8% in the last 24 hours, trading at $22.88 at press time. The price had shown multiple higher highs and higher lows, showing no sign of slowing down.
The RSI for AVAX was also high, showing that there was bullish momentum behind this surge.
But despite these developments, Weighted Sentiment around Avalanche fell over the last few days. This meant that many people on the social front were critical of AVAX, probably as a fallout of the recent acquittal.
If the Weighted Sentiment continues like this, it could impact AVAX’s price in the long run.
Alongside this, Development Activity on Avalanche fell sharply as well. This may impact the pace of new developments on the network, which could affect Avalanche’s ability to attract users to its protocol.
Source: Santiment
Platypus attackers get caught
The Platypus hack occurred on the 16th of February 2023, when Mohammed M. manipulated a coding error and withdrew 8.3 million euros from Platypus’s crypto pool without authorization.
Such security breaches are common in decentralized finance, where blockchain automates crypto transactions. However, flaws in “smart contracts” can be exploited for theft, as seen in this case.
Binance’s [BNB] tip-off led to an investigation by the Central Office for Combating Crime Linked to Information and Communication Technologies.
The two brothers, Mohammed and Benamar M., were arrested on the 24th of February in Aubervilliers.
Mohammed M. faced charges for unauthorized access, fraud, and money laundering. His brother was accused of receiving stolen property.
Read Avalanche’s [AVAX] Price Prediction 2023-24
During Mohammed M.’s court appearance on the 26th of October, he presented an intriguing defense. While not disputing the facts, he portrayed himself as an “ethical hacker” aiming to recover funds for later restitution.
He expected a “bonus” of around 10% from the company, adding complexity to the case as he asserted noble intentions despite facing legal consequences.