Gopax halts withdrawals, trading after receiving hacking threat email

South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Gopax suspended its digital asset withdrawal and trading services Friday after receiving a threatening email implying a hacking attempt. No actual hack or asset loss has been confirmed, but the exchange moved preemptively to protect user assets by transferring them to cold wallets.

According to the digital asset industry, Gopax suspended withdrawal services at around 2:55 p.m. Friday, followed by a halt on trading at 3:53 p.m. All existing unfilled orders were canceled.

The measures came after Gopax received a single threatening email from a party claiming to be a hacker. The exchange said that even though the authenticity of the email had not been verified, it determined that immediate asset protection measures were necessary given the possibility of an actual attack.

Gopax said it would transfer user assets to cold wallets — storage systems isolated from the internet. Assets previously held in hot wallets are also being moved to cold wallets.

Standard withdrawal functions through the Gopax website and mobile app are currently unavailable. Users who wish to withdraw funds must submit a separate request through the customer support center.

"The timeline for resuming services has not yet been determined," a Gopax official said. "We plan to move the assets first and then verify their security."