S.Korea’s Tax Agency Leaked Crypto Master Key — and Got Robbed Twice

South Korea's National Tax Service (NTS) is under scrutiny after accidentally leaking the 24-word mnemonic code (master key) for a wallet holding seized cryptocurrency during a press conference on February 26. The leak, captured in photos of seized USB wallets distributed to the media, resulted in the theft of 4 million PRTG tokens, valued at approximately $4.8 million. The tokens were stolen twice within 24 hours. The first thief drained the wallet but later claimed to have returned the full amount. However, the NTS failed to secure the assets in a new wallet, allowing a second entity to immediately steal the funds again, transferring them to a wallet flagged for phishing activities.

The NTS issued a formal apology, accepting full responsibility for the "careless provision" of sensitive data. Security experts criticized the systemic failure to secure the returned funds. Experts also noted that the $4.8 million valuation is theoretical due to the asset's illiquidity on the MEXC exchange, suggesting the actual realizable value is much lower. This incident follows other high-profile crypto custody failures involving South Korean prosecutors and police, highlighting a need for rapid improvement in technical competence among law enforcement agencies managing digital assets.

(Source：BeInCrypto)