Attacks and hacks on key protocols dropped 70 percent in Q1 2023 compared to the same period in 2022 and were lesser than in any quarter last year.
Attacks on cryptoย token protocols and cryptocurrency projects dropped a staggering 70 percent in Q1 2023 compared to the same period aย yearย ago when greed and valuations ran rampant, a new report by security company TRM Labs shows.
The stolen amount in the 1st 3 months this year is less than any quarter in 2022, showcasing better security measures and suggesting an overall fall in easy exploits.
Onย average hack size likewise took a hit in Q1 2023 โ to $10.5 Million from nearly $30 Million in the same quarter of 2022, even as the number of incidents was similar (around 40), TRM Labs stated in its report.
โTo date, hacking victims have recovered over half of all stolen funds in Q1 2023,โ the company added. โ Forย instance, in March 2023, a hacker exploited a bug in Tender.fiโs code that allowed the attacker to steal over USD 1.5 Million. The hacker thereafter contacted Tender.fi and agreed to return the funds in exchange for a bug bounty of 62.15 ether, worth $850,000.โ
The digitalย currency ecologicalย system has long been a target for attackers owingย to its inherent vulnerabilities. Nonetheless, the wholeย lotย of reduction in cryptocurrency hacks during the 1st quarter of 2023 impliesย that the industry has been actively addressing these challenges and implementing proactive security measures.
Aย yearย ago saw over $3.7 Billion lost to numerous attacks, hacks and scams โ making 2022 the worst year in the marketโs history so far. Attackers gained over $3.2 Billion in 2021. Onย theย otherย hand, 2022 was off to an even rockier start with a $325 Million exploit of trending cross-chain service Wormhole, which was followed by a $625 Million attack on Axie Infinityโs Ronin bridge, and then a $200 Million exploit of the Nomad bridge.
As per TRM Labs, this yearโs decline in cryptocurrency hacks mayย be attributed to numerous factors, including improved cybersecurity practices, stricter regulatory frameworks and increased collaboration between industry participants.
Nonetheless, reasons for concern remain.
โ Unfortunately, this slowdown is possiblyย likely a short-term reprieve rather than a longstanding trend,โ TRM Labs stated, adding that severalย large-scale attacks account for most of the amount stolen from cryptocurrency platforms and users, which can cause the total amount stolen to fluctuate significantly month-to-month.
โThe 10 largest hacks in 2022 accounted for approximately 75 percent of the total amount stolen in 2022,โ it concluded.
