Once a centralized exchange suffers a massive crypto theft, it is not only the hackers who are truly being put on trial, but also the platform’s security systems and information transparency. Academic research indicates that CEXs naturally carry custody risks, information asymmetry, and principal–agent problems, and that relying on “proof of reserves” alone cannot cover internal governance and key security.
Of course, we should not conclude “self-sabotage” based solely on the fact that funds were stolen. In reality, the FBI and blockchain security organizations have indeed, on multiple occasions, attributed major crypto theft incidents to hackers linked to North Korea.
So what users should really ask is not “who’s to blame,” but: where is the evidence? Where are the security mechanisms? Where did the money go?