Upbit Poured 62.7 Billion Won into Security, But... The Remaining Task After 44.5 Billion Won Hacking is 'Restoring Trust'

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Dunamu, which operates the digital asset exchange Upbit, has invested 62.7 billion won in information security over the past five years, accelerating the strengthening of its security capabilities. However, given the large-scale hacking incident last year and the controversy over delayed incident notification, the market is keen to see if increased investment can lead to the restoration of user trust.

On the 29th, Dunamu announced that it had invested a total of 62.7 billion won in information security over the past five years. Last year's investment amounted to 24.34 billion won, a 64.7% increase from approximately 14.8 billion won in the previous year. Out of last year's 210.33 billion won IT investment, the proportion of information security investment was 11.6%, significantly higher than the average of 6.28% for domestic companies. The number of dedicated information security personnel also more than quadrupled, from 9.9 in 2021 to 43.9 last year.

Dunamu conducts regular internal IT security audits for Upbit and maintains 7 domestic and international security certifications, including the Information Security and Personal Information Protection Management System (ISMS-P). It also explained that it is strengthening its security system by operating a total of 12 user protection activities, such as the Upbit Bug Bounty program, phishing prevention guides, and voice phishing prevention campaigns.

However, despite the massive investment, the challenge of restoring user trust still remains. In November last year, Upbit experienced a hacking incident where Solana-based assets worth approximately 44.5 billion won were unlawfully transferred to an external wallet. Subsequently, it froze some of the stolen assets and proceeded with compensation procedures. According to data released last June, Upbit compensated approximately 790 million won in relation to the incident. At the time, the fact of the hacking was disclosed after the event concluded, leading to controversy over the timing of the announcement.

Security investment is a core element of an exchange's competitiveness, but safety is not guaranteed by the scale of investment alone. The industry believes that trust can only be secured when actual incident prevention capabilities, speed of crisis response, and transparent communication with users are all supported. In particular, as cyberattacks targeting exchanges become increasingly sophisticated, it is crucial to continuously enhance not only prevention systems but also prompt notification and response processes in the event of an incident.

Jung Jae-yong, Dunamu's Chief Information Security Officer (CISO), stated, "The value of digital finance can be sustained based on customer trust. We will continue to invest and strive to protect customer assets." The industry believes that Dunamu's aggressive security investments, along with actual security performance and the restoration of user trust, will be key tasks that determine its future competitiveness.

*Disclaimer: This article is for investment reference only, and we are not responsible for any investment losses based on it. The content should be interpreted for informational purposes only.*