Over $31B Lost to Crypto Hacks and Scams in 13 Years – Analyst

As cryptocurrencies have evolved into a multibillion-dollar industry, so have the hacks and scams that come with them. A recent report reveals that there have been 536 incidents over the last 13 years, totaling more than $31 billion in losses.

Analyst Igor Stepahin curated a list of crypto scams calling it “the largest dataset of crypto losses.”

The analyst highlighted a unique hybrid of a Bubble Chart and Swarm Plot showing the distribution of crypto hacking incidents over the said period. Each circle represents an incident, with its size indicating the amount lost (if reported). The X-axis displays dates, while the Y-axis is free for optimal positioning.

Here are some of the key insights as revealed in the report.

Over $18 billion in losses have been attributed to scams, rug pulls, smart contract hacks, DeFi hacks, and other types of hacks.
The majority of hacking incidents involve relatively small amounts, but the frequency of massive losses (over $10 million) has increased dramatically in recent years.
Some regions are more prone to crypto hacks than others.

Rising Threat of DeFi and Crypto Hacks

Cryptocurrency hacking is a widespread and significant threat, resulting in billions of dollars being stolen from platforms. The year 2022 marked a record high for crypto theft, with $3.7 billion reportedly stolen. The following year, the total amount stolen dropped by around 54.3% to $1.7 billion, though the number of individual hacking incidents increased, rising from 219 in 2022 to 231 in 2023.

The analysis also talked about DeFi hacking which exploded in 2021 and 2022. Here, attackers would steal approximately $2.5 billion and $3.1 billion, respectively, from protocols.

Mar Gimenez-Aguilar, a security analyst, shared that there has been a severity of attacks in the DeFi ecosystem and this is quite worrying. “In our comprehensive analysis of the top 50 DeFi hacks, we observed that EVM-based chains and Solana are among the most targeted chains, largely due to their popularity and capability to execute smart contracts” she added.

Security experts also explained that many of the vulnerabilities in DeFi likely arose because protocol operators prioritized growth over the development and maintenance of strong security measures.

Gairika holds positions in BTC. This article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The Shib Magazine and The Shib Daily are the official media and publications of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency project. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.

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