South Korean prosecutors in Gwangju have successfully recovered 320 bitcoin, valued at $22 million, that were lost due to a phishing scam. The incident occurred during an audit when staff used a fraudulent online wallet checking tool. Officials have identified the operator of the phishing site and blocked related transactions.
In January, officials at the Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office admitted to losing control of 320 bitcoin stored in five USB-powered cold wallets within a sealed vault. The cryptocurrencies, worth approximately $22 million, had been confiscated in November 2021 from the daughter of a suspect in an illegal online gambling operation. Both the suspect and her daughter face ongoing trials in Gwangju.
The loss came to light on January 16 during an audit in August 2025, when prosecution staff attempted to verify the wallets using an online tool that proved to be a phishing platform. This allowed the site's operators to drain the contents of all five wallets automatically.
Prosecutors responded swiftly by identifying the phishing website's associated cryptocurrency wallet. They requested that domestic and major international exchanges block any transactions from that wallet. A probe was also initiated into the suspected operator of the phishing site and linked companies.
A Gwangju prosecution official stated, “We plan to conduct a thorough investigation to clearly explain the full details of the case,” as reported by the South Korean newspaper Munhwa Ilbo.
The incident drew further attention when police in Seoul revealed they had similarly lost bitcoin valued at $2 million. In response, prosecution and police offices nationwide were directed to audit their cold wallets to prevent additional losses of confiscated cryptocurrencies.
Crypto-related crimes have been increasing in South Korea and globally, highlighting vulnerabilities in handling digital assets.