- The first half of 2023 saw losses amounting to $656 million due to scams, hacks, and rug pulls in the crypto market. However, compared to previous years, these figures represent a significant improvement.
- There has been substantial progress in asset recovery, with approximately $215 million of the stolen assets reclaimed, equating to 45.5% of all purloined assets.
In the ever-evolving crypto landscape, the first half of 2023 bore witness to substantial losses, with scams, hacks, and rug pulls leading to $656 million in damages. The startling figures, announced by Beosin, a Web3 security firm, have taken the crypto community by surprise.
Protocol Hacks and Asset Recovery: The Upswing in Crypto Security
Of the total loss, protocol hacks alone were responsible for $471 million, with a total count of 108 such events. Additionally, phishing scams amounted to another $108 million, while rug pulls accounted for almost $76 million. Though seemingly astronomical, these figures show a considerable improvement from previous years. In the first half of 2021, losses stood at a staggering $1.91 billion, and in 2022, the losses were marginally less at $1.69 billion.
Significant strides have also been made in recovering the stolen assets. Beosin reports that,
“approximately $215 million of stolen assets were reclaimed, amounting to 45.5% of all stolen assets. In contrast, only 8% were recovered in 2022.”
Euler Finance fell victim to the most severe crypto hack of H1 2023, losing $195 million to a single flash-loan attack. The silver lining was that most of the stolen assets were successfully reclaimed.
Of all the lost assets, tokens on the Ethereum blockchain accounted for over three-quarters of the total. More than half of the stolen crypto value was due to vulnerabilities in smart contract systems, which points to the need for continued vigilance and innovation in securing these digital agreements.
As we forge ahead in this age of digital currencies, it is important to stay informed about safeguarding one’s crypto assets from scams, hacks, and rug pulls. Although the loss figures from the first half of 2023 are sobering, the substantial improvement in comparison to prior years is a positive indication of the resilience and potential of the blockchain technology and crypto space.
