According to a report by blockchain security platform Immunefi, attacks on cryptocurrency and Web3 projects increased by 153% from July to September 2023 compared with the same period in 2022. In the third quarter of 2022, there were a total of 30 attacks.But in the third quarter of 2023, this number swelling to 76. It lost nearly $686 million in the most recent quarter.
The largest loss came from the Mixin hacker attack on September 25, which resulted in a loss of approximately US$200 million. The multi-chain hack was the second most serious attack of the season, causing more than $126 million in losses that have yet to be recovered. In addition to these incidents, Lazarus Group has stolen over $208 million worth of cryptocurrency through multiple attacks, including hacks of centralized services CoinEx, Alphapo, Stake, and Coinspaid. The report states that 30% of all stolen cryptocurrencies in the third quarter were caused by the Lazarus Group.
related: Exclusive: Hacker sells CoinEx-related discount tokens, Stake hack
A small portion of Season 3’s attacks included rug-pulling and other scams. Only $23 million (3.3% of total losses) came from such incidents, while the remaining 96.7% came from hackers or exploits. Overall, monetary losses due to fraud fell 23.9% in the third quarter compared with the third quarter of 2022.
According to the report, decentralized finance (DeFi) hacks accounted for 72.9% of total losses, while centralized services accounted for only 27.1% of exploitation losses. Immunefi did not explain how they define “decentralized” and “centralized” services.
The two networks most targeted by hackers and scammers are Ethereum and the BNB chain. Ethereum accounted for 42.7% of the losses, while BNB Chain accounted for 30.5%. Base and Optimism are the third and fourth networks most exploited by attackers.
The report provides further evidence that the third quarter was the worst quarter for crypto-related hacks and scams this year. Certik’s Oct. 2 report reached a similar conclusion.
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