CoinDCX insider investigated after $44M crypto theft

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Emilio Ghigini

31.07.2025

CoinDCX insider investigated after $44M crypto theft — Hacked DevOps engineer at CoinDCX arrested by police

The investigation into the recent hack of Indian cryptocurrency exchange CoinDCX has led to a company insider, whose role and potential involvement in the $44 million theft is now under police scrutiny.

According to Indian media, on July 26, criminal police (CEN) in the Whitefield district of Bangalore arrested Rahul Agarwal, a 30-year-old software engineer at CoinDCX.

Agarwal, employed by the crypto exchange since May 2023 and promoted to a full-time role in April 2025, reportedly had his credentials compromised, enabling hackers to access the exchange’s internal systems.

Some sources say Agarwal’s work laptop was infected via malware sent over WhatsApp from a German number offering a fake job opportunity. This sophisticated social engineering attack highlights growing risks targeting crypto industry employees.

Agarwal, a DevOps engineer, denied direct involvement in the hack but admitted to freelancing for three to four private clients, potentially exposing his credentials.

Authorities also discovered an unexplained deposit of 1.5 million rupees (~$17,100) into his bank account, raising questions about insider participation.

CoinDCX CEO Sumit Gupta confirmed via X (formerly Twitter) that the breach affected an internal system, not user wallets, but declined to provide further details.

“Some media reports reference our FIR filed with Karnataka police regarding the breach. As the investigation continues, we cannot comment publicly to ensure the integrity of the process. We are fully cooperating with law enforcement,” Gupta wrote.

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Sophisticated social engineering

Gupta described the attack as highly sophisticated, involving advanced social engineering tactics:

“Such attacks often aim to gain unauthorized access via internal staff. As far as we know, authorities are actively working to trace the hackers responsible for this breach,” he said.

Following the July 19 hack, CoinDCX filed a police complaint and launched a bounty program, offering up to 25% of the stolen funds (about $11 million) as a reward for any information that helps in asset recovery.

So far, the results of the bounty initiative remain unknown. The incident has underscored the crypto industry’s vulnerability to advanced cyberattacks and the urgent need for employee training and credential security.

As we wrote, Coinbase eyes CoinDCX acquisition amid India expansion plans

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