How did ZachXBT, the strongest detective in the crypto world, crack the $243 million encryption theft case?

ZachXBT is an anonymous Cryptocurrency detective who has helped recover nearly $500 million in stolen funds since 2021. Recently, he cracked a $243 million theft case, becoming the largest individual Cryptocurrency theft case. This article will explore his tracking methods and achievements. The article originates from an article written by Andy Greenberg, compiled and translated by BlockBeats. (Previous summary: Ken's ex-girlfriend launches coin》$MUVA surges 44,000% in two hours, on-chain detective: no change in cutting leeks' attitude...) (Background: Victims criticize FTX bankruptcy liquidation as "secondary theft" behavior, and apply to the court to recover $8 billion in frozen assets) Ansem confronts and reveals the Murad Address, exposes U Business King Yicong, and discloses SHAR's project deck. I believe many readers have recently heard the name ZachXBT frequently. Since 2021, on-chain detective ZachXBT has helped fraud and theft victims recover nearly $500 million. Last month, he cracked a $243 million theft case, the largest individual theft case in history. From deep tracking of crimes on the Block chain to revealing the huge fund flow behind the luxurious life, ZachXBT, with his intelligence and persistence, has helped recover hundreds of millions of dollars in stolen funds in just a few years. This article from 'Wired' magazine will take you into the mysterious world of this Cryptocurrency 'faceless detective,' revealing how he battles with encryption criminals and the little-known stories behind the scenes. The original content is as follows: On August 19, a young man in his twenties, nicknamed ZachXBT, was preparing to board his flight home. He did not want to reveal which airport, his real name, or where he lived. At this time, his phone received an alert: a BTC was transferred to a small Cryptocurrency exchange. This was one of the many exchanges he had been monitoring for a long time, mainly to find fund flows related to Money Laundering. This alert caught his attention: the transaction amount was about $600,000, far exceeding the exchange's daily trading volume by 10 times. As he approached the boarding gate, his phone received a new alert: another transaction of over $1 million on the same exchange. This was followed by a $2 million transaction. While ZachXBT was queuing to board, he quickly tracked the funds on his phone, looked up the BTC address, and marked suspicious funds, trying to trace the source of the funds before the internet was cut off half an hour after the flight took off. Before the plane took off, he had identified that the funds came from a large BTC wallet that had not been touched since 2012, with a total amount in the hundreds of millions of dollars. And now, this nine-digit sum was being cashed out urgently, paying high Money Laundering fees, a practice clearly not acceptable to an investor who had held the coins for over a decade. In ZachXBT's view, this fund movement was obviously a large-scale theft case. After further verification, he found that someone had stolen about $243 million worth of BTC from a victim, possibly the largest individual Cryptocurrency theft case in history. "This is indeed a very abnormal amount stolen from one person," ZachXBT told 'Wired' magazine, "I had to confirm that I wasn't mistaken." When the plane climbed above ten thousand feet and the Wi-Fi resumed, ZachXBT began tracking the flow of more stolen funds. These funds were transferred through one exchange after another and coin-to-coin exchange platforms. Over the next few hours, he accelerated the mapping of the branches of these fund flows, discovering that hackers were trying to hide the traces of funds through dozens of platforms. As he traced back to the owner of the BTC along this clue, ZachXBT found that part of the funds originally came from the now-closed Genesis Cryptocurrency exchange. He messaged the exchange administrator through X Platform (formerly Twitter) and asked them to contact the victim, eventually the victim hired him to trace the stolen funds. By the time he arrived at his destination, ZachXBT had found that the stolen funds were divided into three main fund flows, pointing to three suspects he identified. He also posted a message to his over 650,000 fans on X Platform, pointing out the ongoing theft activity on the Block chain. Shortly after, he received a message from an informant claiming to have clues about the hackers' identities. Over the next week, ZachXBT worked day and night, sleeping only four to five hours a day, and regularly shared his investigation results with law enforcement agencies. He eventually identified the suspects of the theft — two young hackers in their twenties named Malone Lam and Jeandiel Serrano. ZachXBT also identified another hacking suspect, but 'Wired' magazine chose not to disclose his name as he has not been arrested or charged. He even obtained a video showing one of them celebrating the successful theft of this huge wealth. In his rapid investigation, ZachXBT even tracked down the Instagram and TikTok accounts of these suspects, seeing one of them spending hundreds of millions of dollars, buying luxury cars, flying on private jets, and spending up to $500,000 in a night club. Less than a month after receiving that alert on the plane, two of the three suspects were arrested and faced criminal charges. When ZachXBT finally saw the arrest photo of one of the hackers, he felt a brief surge of adrenaline, but quickly calmed down. "I don't feel particularly accomplished," ZachXBT said, "I just see it as another ordinary case." Results of BTC theft investigation | ZachXBT's pinned tweet A Cryptocurrency private detective serving the public If tracking a $250 million theft case is just another day online for ZachXBT, it may be because he has become the most active independent Cryptocurrency detective globally in the past three years. Since starting work as a freelance investigator in 2021, he has tracked down billions of dollars in stolen funds and fraud cases. According to a table he provided to 'Wired' magazine, his hundreds of investigations directly led to the recovery of about $210 million in criminal Cryptocurrency funds, with another $225 million recovered indirectly with his help for victims. He has exposed influencers who promote Tokens through pump-and-dump scams, tracked down cybercriminals behind large Cryptocurrency theft cases, and uncovered dozens of incidents of North Korean hackers infiltrating encryption companies and even penetrating them as employees. Throughout the process, he has relied almost entirely on Cryptocurrency donations to fund his work, including grants from Cryptocurrency organizations and contributions sent by strangers to the Address listed in his social media profiles, totaling approximately $1.3 million since 2021. "He is a new generation investigator, serving the public," said Joe McGill, an analyst with the U.S. Secret Service who has worked with ZachXBT, "his success depends entirely on the success of his investigations." In his pursuit of becoming a Cryptocurrency 'justice police,' ZachXBT has always been cautious...