Cryptocurrency Hacks Surge in July 2024
In July 2024, the cryptocurrency industry faced a serious security crisis, with hackers orchestrating 16 major breaches, resulting in the theft of approximately $266 million in assets. This sharp increase in thefts highlights a worrying trend, surpassing the $176 million losses from the previous month.
Major Breaches and Victims
The most high-profile attack took place on July 18, when Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX was breached, resulting in losses of over $230 million, which accounted for 86.4% of the total losses for the month. Investigations suggest that North Korean cybercriminals may be responsible for this massive hacking attack. As of August 1, blockchain security firm PeckShield reported that 61,154 Ethereum, stolen from WazirX, remained under the hackers’ control.
Other notable victims in July included Compound Finance (loss of $24 million), Li.Fi bridging protocol (loss of $10 million), Bittensor decentralized artificial intelligence protocol, and Rho Markets liquidity provider (both suffering losses of $8 million each). Many of the stolen assets were laundered through the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, a common tactic used by hackers to obfuscate the origin of stolen funds.
Terra Blockchain Suffers $6 Million Hacker Attack
Towards the end of July, the Terra blockchain experienced a major security incident. Exploiting known vulnerabilities, hackers made away with 60 million ASTRO tokens, $500,000, $3.5 million in coins, and 2.7 Bitcoins, resulting in a total loss of $6 million. The attack led to Terra temporarily halting operations at block height 11430400. However, developers swiftly responded by implementing an emergency chain upgrade and resumed block production on the same day.
The Terra team ensured that validators with over 67% of the voting power updated their nodes to prevent future vulnerabilities, with others expected to follow suit. Deddy Lavid, co-founder and CEO of Web3 security company Cyvers, highlighted the changing landscape of hacker targets in 2024, with CeFi entities becoming prime targets, especially smart contract-based projects.
Record Recovery Rates Amid Ongoing Threat
Despite the surge in hacks and scams, the crypto market has demonstrated resilience. In the second quarter of 2024, the recovery rate of stolen funds reached a record 77%. Hacken’s Q2 2024 Web3 Security Report revealed that out of the $512.9 million lost to theft, $347.4 million has been successfully recovered or frozen.
The report emphasizes that despite the alarming theft rates, the amount of recovered funds provides a glimmer of hope. Nonetheless, the threat of cryptocurrency scams persists, with platforms like X (formerly Twitter) remaining hubs for fraudulent activities. According to web3 anti-fraud company Scam Sniffer, almost $50 million is lost monthly due to account impersonation on the platform.
As cryptocurrency thefts continue to rise, the industry faces the pressing need for heightened security measures and increased vigilance to combat these ongoing threats.
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