Flutterwave, a Nigerian fintech firm, has denied allegations of hackers stealing $6.3 million from user accounts. However, the company reported that their transaction monitoring system identified an irregular pattern associated with some users’ profiles, which prompted further investigation. Flutterwave confirmed that no money was stolen and that the situation is under control. They also reassured customers that all user information is secure and no account has been affected.
Flutterwave denies hack
On March 5, Flutterwave declared in a statement that no user had lost any funds, and thanks to corrective measures taken, it had been able to address the issue before any harm could be done. This statement followed reports that alleged that as much as $6.3 million (2.9 billion naira) had been siphoned from user accounts in early February. Additionally, these reports also stated that Flutterwave acted by filing a motion to freeze accounts at 27 financial institutions.
Flutterwave said it is working with other financial institutions and law enforcement agencies to keep its ecosystem safe and secure. However, the fintech firm insisted it only acted after detecting anomalies on some users’ accounts. Flutterwave explained that during a routine check of its transaction monitoring system, its team discovered an unusual trend of transactions which prompted a review per their standard operating procedure. The company revealed that some users who had not enabled certain recommended security settings could have been vulnerable.
Flutterwave added that it implemented preventive measures that enabled them to mitigate the issue before any of its users could be adversely affected.
On Twitter, several users disputed Flutterwave’s narrative of the alleged hacking. Alex Onyia, a Flutterwave user, tweeted that Omar Edewor Trades had hacked the platform and stolen millions of naira from customer accounts. Another user, Ufedo, shared “evidence” to support the claim that Flutterwave was hacked.
