Crypto adoption has been on the prime for the last few years, making it an industry of $2.09 Trillion and facilitating billions worth of transactions daily. However, this growth is not limited to this only, as the number of crypto hacks and scams is also rising every month, questioning the security of service providers and regulators.
Every month, a new crypto scam happens in some parts of the world with a new technology & tool. Scams like pig butchering, rug pulls and many others are also rising. Just recently, the FBI recovered five million in these scams, but billions of other money are lost out there with no way of retrieval.
Crypto Hacks Surged 15.5% From 2023 Looting $1.2 Billion
In 2023, the crypto industry witnessed many tiring and repetitive crypto hacks with various exchanges, service providers, and even individual personal wallets. However, this year’s count has left behind the 2023 data by 15.5%, as more than $1.21 Billion has already been lost this year.
This revelation came after an Indian exchange, the WazirX hack, lost $230 million, making it the biggest crypto hack of the year. Moreover, the new reports revealed that $1.21 Billion worth of digital assets hacks have been lost under the rug pull scams, exploiting more than 154 individuals.
In 2023, August data reveals a loss of $1,048,044,942 in hacks, but 2024 has dominated in that scenario with 15.5%. Moreover, based on the Immunefi report, the biggest security breach happened in May, when the industry lost around $358,523,484. The second highest was during July, where $274,719,252 were stolen, followed by $141,558,550 in June.
August Had The Lowest Hacks
This year has witnessed many significant thefts, causing billions in losses, including the Indian exchange WazirX hack. However, despite that, the calculation has decreased by 94% for August, according to the month-to-month data.
This August, only $15M was stolen, which is 94% less than the $274m lost value from the previous month. However, compared to August 2023, there is a 38% decrease in this one. Overall, a total of $24,581,220 was lost last August, whereas $15,082,000 in August 2024. More importantly, zero crypto scams were officially noticed this month.
Two major incidents, the Ronin Network, and the Nexera hack also happened this month, costing $9.8M and $1.5M. These were due to the vulnerability that arose from the code upgrades, says Mitchell Amador, the founder of Immunefi.
Convergence clarified in their post-mortem that they had “modified [that] part of the code post-audit,” which highlights the critical importance of maintaining a security-first approach at every step.
The next three crypto hacks were in VOW, Convergence Finance, and iVest DAO, losing $1.2 Million, $210,000, and $170,000. Moreover, the DeFi sector has faced the biggest exploits this month despite CeFi being the vulnerability.
Final Thoughts
The Ethereum and BNB chain has become the main victim of the August crypto hacks. In this, the market lost $15 million from five incidents of Ronin, Nexera, VOW, Convergence Finance, and iVest DAO. Overall, the year has witnessed a 15.5% surge in these hacks, losing $1.21 Billion worth of crypto assets. However, compared to any other month, August had the lowest loss, with a 94% decline from the previous months.
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