In November 2023, the cryptocurrency industry experienced a significant surge in cybercriminal activity, marking it as one of the most alarming months for crypto-related thefts, scams, and exploits.
According to a report by a blockchain security firm, CertiK, malicious actors managed to amass a staggering $363 million during this month.
The primary contributors to this record-breaking figure were exploits, flash loans, and exit scams. Exploits alone accounted for approximately $316.4 million in losses, while flash loans inflicted $45.5 million in damages.
Additionally, victims fell prey to various exit scams, resulting in a loss of $1.1 million, as reported by CertiK on November 30 via their X (formerly Twitter) post.
Notable incidents during November included the devastating exploits on Poloniex and HTX/Heco Bridge, which led to losses of $131.4 million and $113.3 million, respectively.
A single individual also suffered a massive $27 million loss due to a phishing attack. Furthermore, the $45 million KyberSwap attack dominated the flash loan attack category for the month.
This surge in crypto-related crimes surpassed the previous record of $329 million, established in September, primarily due to the $200 million Mixin Network attack.
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Cumulatively, as of the end of November 2023, the crypto industry has witnessed a total loss of approximately $1.7 billion attributed to exploits, exit scams, and flash loan attacks.
While this is a substantial figure, it accounts for only 54% of the losses incurred during the entirety of 2022, which amounted to $3.7 billion.
The year 2021 also saw substantial losses of $1.7 billion, according to CertiK’s data.
Ronghui Gu, one of CertiK’s founders, emphasized that a standard smart contract audit is no longer sufficient in today’s evolving threat landscape.
Cybercriminals are continuously finding innovative ways to exploit vulnerabilities, with tactics such as SIM-swapping and multisignature vulnerabilities being among the latest security pitfalls exploited.
These frequent and high-profile exploits are causing concerns within the crypto community, hindering adoption.
Christian Seifert, a researcher at Forta Network, stated that these incidents are akin to a traditional bank getting robbed, which could deter potential users from entering the Web3 space.
Jerry Peng, a research analyst at Web3 analytics firm 0xScope, concurred, noting that such events are scaring away individuals who were once interested in exploring the world of Web3.
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