Dear reader,
In 2023, the Web3 space faced a significant threat, with US$1.8 billion lost to hackers and scammers, as revealed by a report from Immunefi. The Lazarus Group, linked to North Korea, accounted for 17% of these losses, highlighting the persistent cyber threats faced by the crypto ecosystem. The largest breach targeted peer-to-peer trading platform Mixin Network, resulting in over US$200 million in losses. Euler Finance and Multichain followed closely with US$197 million and US$126 million losses, respectively.
Law enforcement identified US$309 million associated with Lazarus Group, indicating the magnitude of cybercriminal activity tied to North Korea. Notably, hacks outweighed fraud schemes, constituting over US$1.6 billion in losses compared to US$103 million from identifiable fraud.
Surprisingly, decentralised protocols, claiming to enhance security, incurred the majority of losses at US$1.3 billion, while centralised finance protocols faced US$409 million in losses. The reported $1.8 billion loss reflects a notable decline from the previous year, signalling an evolving landscape in Web3 security.
Sainul,
Editor.
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US$1.8B was lost to Web3 hackers and fraudsters in 2023: Immunefi
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