January 12, 2023 12:22
In recent years, blockchain technology has attracted a lot of attention due to its potential to revolutionize a number of industries and due to its high security indicator due to decentralization. However, like any technology, blockchain is not immune to hacking attacks. A total of $3.5 billion in assets were stolen as a result of attacks on the blockchain system in 2022.
According to researchers from Slowmist Hacked and Atlas VPN, most funds – $2 billion in 92 attacks – were stolen from the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) ecosystem and cross-chain bridges that transfer both data and assets between different blockchain networks.
There were 16 cross-chain bridge hacks resulting in the theft of $1.2 billion and 76 BSC attacks resulting in $870 million stolen.
During the attack on BNB Chain in October, the hacker stole approximately $588 million. It became the second biggest hacker attack of the year. The Ethereum ecosystem also failed to avoid these attacks. In 2022, 49 attacks caused more than $500 million in damage to this cryptocurrency.
There were also 48 attacks on other crypto projects and platforms, with criminals stealing $370 million. A total of 57 attacks took place in the NFT segment, and the total loss was $90 million.
The researchers note that they did not take into account losses incurred following the bankruptcy of cryptocurrency exchange FTX last year, as the final amount has not yet been calculated. By the way, FTX has recovered assets worth over $5 billion.
Blockchain attacks are on the rise
Slowmist Hacked and Atlas VPN researchers note that despite the overall slowdown in activity in the cryptocurrency market, hackers have been very active over the past year, particularly due to the spread of blockchain technology.
Thus, a total of 301 attacks were recorded across the entire market in 2022, which means that attacks in 2022 increased by 27% compared to 2021. Moreover, despite the relative decrease in the number of attacks from pirates in the second half of last year, their total number was a record for the year.
The authors note that in the first quarter of 2022, there were 79 attacks on the blockchain system, the most incidents recorded in a quarter. During this quarter, hackers stole over $1.2 billion worth of cryptocurrencies.
However, hacker attacks increased by 24% in the second quarter. A total of 98 attacks were recorded in which cybercriminals stole more than $800 million from the blockchain, down from the first quarter.
Due to the plummeting prices of most cryptocurrencies, hacker attacks on the blockchain decreased significantly, reaching only 56 incidents in Q3, a 43% drop from Q2. While the cryptocurrency market is still in decline, hackers and scammers used more schemes in the last quarter of the year. During the mentioned period, 68 incidents were recorded, as a result of which more than one billion dollars in assets were stolen.
Source : https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiImh0dHBzOi8vdGVjaC5uZXdzLmFtL2VuZy9uZXdzLzU5My_SAWtodHRwczovL3RlY2gubmV3cy5hbS9lbmcvYW1wLzU5My9oYWNrZXJzLXN0ZWFsLSQzNWJuLXdvcnRoLW9mLWNyeXB0b2N1cnJlbmNpZXMtZnJvbS1ibG9ja2NoYWluLWluLTIwMjIuaHRtbA?oc=5
