The Race Against Hackers: Why Security Speed Matters in Digital Finance
written by: Christina Cravens
On December 18, we at Crypto ISAC had a great conversation with Sebastian Fernandez and Felipe Manzano, the co-founders of BitFinding. Our discussion, titled "Defense at Block Speed" was all about what it takes to find, stop, and prevent the loss of funds when digital attacks happen in just a few minutes.
When Being "Good" at Security Still Isn't Enough
The biggest lesson from a recent hack involving a company called Balancer is a tough one. Strong security isn’t a perfect shield. Balancer had done everything right, lots of security checks, a way to quickly fix emergencies, a big reward for finding bugs, and constant monitoring.
Even so, they were hit. A new type of attack used a flaw that was three years old but nobody thought could be easily exploited.
The result was painful. More than $145 million was stolen across different networks, causing big problems and damaging their reputation.
BitFinding's Solution: "Attack Interception"
BitFinding has a simple idea. Protecting digital money is a race against hackers. Defenders need tools that can move as fast as the attackers, especially across different blockchain systems. They see attack interception as the "very last stop" for defense, supporting all the other security steps like audits and monitoring.
In the real-world Balancer incident, BitFinding showcased how critical speed is. The first attack created a tiny window of opportunity. An extra $70 million was at risk, and fast, automated action was the only thing that could save it.
It also highlighted that security alerts often arrive minutes after the attack has started. If you're relying on a person to react, it’s often too late.
BitFinding talked about how their "interception agent," a system designed for this kind of problem, uses techniques that include:
Specialized testing to predict attacks
Advanced transaction handling
Mapping addresses across different chains
Careful use of computing power
Ways to bypass attacker's checks
Webinar Q&A Takeaways
The audience questions were excellent. Here are the key lessons:
How do you win a speed race against a hacker? Blockchains are often "first come, first serve." But when two transactions compete, it comes down to smart strategy and sometimes financial incentives.
How can a defense system handle the hacker's secret methods? Real-time defense has to handle the messy details, including precise numbers, necessary tokens, and related contracts on different systems. BitFinding uses fine-tuned testing paired with techniques to get past the secret checks that attackers use to hide their exploits.
Can we use one attack to protect against others? Yes, this is a powerful takeaway. Attack transactions can be 99 percent the same. A specialized system can spot these links in real time, which helps a business respond quickly across all its vaults and systems.
What's Next for Our Crypto ISAC Community
At Crypto ISAC, our goal is to help the industry get ahead of these problems by moving toward real-time defense. Webinars like this are how we share practical lessons, help everyone learn faster, and make our community stronger.
You can watch the full session on-demand here: View Now or on Youtube here: View Now
We invite you to learn more about Crypto ISAC membership and how we continue to support our mission at CryptoISAC.org.
You can also explore how BitFinding’s technology can support your business at BitFinding.com.
Christina Cravens serves as Director of Member Engagement at Crypto ISAC, driving membership growth, marketing strategy, and community collaboration.
About Crypto ISAC
The Crypto ISAC is a member-driven, not-for-profit organization that works together to curb malicious actors, address vulnerabilities, share intelligence, and move security forward to protect the crypto ecosystem. We are founded by leading crypto organizations and designed for cryptosecurity experts to address the security and trust challenges that face crypto today and shape the crypto ecosystem of tomorrow.
