The Web3 space had a lot of security problems in 2023. Hackers and con artists stole $1.8 billion, which is a worrying trend in the digital asset business.
This number, which was highlighted in a study by the blockchain security platform Immunefi on December 28th, shows how vulnerable and risky Web3 technologies are becoming as they change.
A big chunk of these losses—about 17 percent—were caused by the Lazarus Group, a well-known cybercriminal group that is thought to have ties to North Korea. Just this group was to blame for about $309 million of the total loses. The Atomic Wallet hack, which cost $100 million, and large thefts from CoinEx and Alphapo are two well-known events that were linked to the Lazarus Group.
The report talks about a number of big hacking incidents that happened over the course of the year and cost hundreds of millions of dollars. The worst of these was when over $200 million was stolen from crypto investors in the breach of the peer-to-peer trading website Mixin.
The Euler Finance loan platform was next, with a hack that cost $197 million, and the Multichain protocol was next, with a hack that cost $126 million.
It’s interesting that most of the money that was lost in 2023 was due to hacks and not scams. Only $103 million of the total loses could be traced back to known fraud schemes like rug pulls. On the other hand, hacks and other security holes cost more than $1.6 billion.
It is important to note that most of these losses—$1.3 billion worth—came from systems that said they were decentralized. Centralized finance (CeFi) crypto systems, on the other hand, caused $409 million in losses.
In the grand scheme of things, the $1.8 billion in losses in 2023 is a big drop—more than 52% less than the previous year. A study from Chainalysis, another blockchain security company, says that more than $3.8 billion was stolen in 2022. This drop could mean that security measures are getting more attention and people are becoming more aware of holes in the Web3 environment.
The data from 2023 is a very important reminder of the risks and problems that still exist in the world of digital assets. It shows how important it is to stay alert, improve security measures, and come up with all-around plans to fight cyber threats in the world of Web3 and decentralized technologies, which is growing quickly.
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