Privacy Protocol Umbra Shuts Down Frontend to Thwart Kelp Attackers, Tornado Cash Cofounder Says Move Is Insufficient to Avoid Regulatory Scrutiny

BlockBeats News, April 22, the privacy protocol Umbra has shut down its front-end website to increase the difficulty of hackers transferring the stolen funds. Umbra stated that approximately $800,000 of stolen funds were moved through its protocol, and the front-end shutdown was a "maintenance mode" decision that will be restored after ensuring no disruption to the recovery effort.

This action comes as the Kelp protocol was recently attacked, resulting in a loss of over $280 million. The attackers are suspected to be North Korean hackers who attempted to cross-chain the funds from Ethereum to Bitcoin through protocols like Umbra.

However, Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm warned that merely shutting down the front end may not be enough to avoid regulatory scrutiny. He pointed out that in his case, authorities believed that "changing the front end is equivalent to controlling the entire protocol" and that "if you can modify the user interface, including updating it via a new version on IPFS, then you have full control of the protocol."

In response, Umbra stated that its protocol is primarily used to "protect the recipient's identity, not the sender's," and all stolen funds flowing through its protocol can be traced. The team has been in touch with security researchers.