Crypto Hackers Seized $409 Million in Q3

According to a report by Immunefi, hackers stole $409 million worth of cryptocurrency in the third quarter and another $3 million was lost due to fraud.

The platform reported that this figure is 40% less than in the third quarter of 2023.

Immunefi stated that the amount of capital locked in decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols is a “unique opportunity for black hat hackers.” According to DefiLlama, there is currently $87.2 billion in total value locked (TVL) across DeFi.

Most of the quarter’s losses came from crypto hacks worth $235 million against India-based WazirX and $52 million against Singapore-based BingX. The other 32 attacks accounted for only 32% of the total losses, the report states.

According to Mitchell Amador, founder and CEO of Immunefi, “While we see many more incidents targeting DeFi, CeFi attacks result in the theft of hundreds of millions of funds in a single exploit.”

“The biggest infrastructure challenge in CeFi is private key management, which is required to maintain self-custody of crypto assets but is generally not subject to security controls. Therefore, rigorous lock management policies, practices and emergency plans are required.”

The Ethereum blockchain is the most popular target for hackers, suffering 15 attacks in total, with BNB Chain reporting 8 attacks and Base reporting 2 attacks.