In June, the cryptocurrency sector experienced a downturn in the frequency and severity of security breaches, according to the latest figures from PeckShield, a leading crypto analytics company. The month saw approximately 20 incidents, culminating in a collective loss close to $176 million—a notable 54.2% drop from the $385 million pilfered in May.
**Source: PeckShield**
June’s most significant security lapse occurred at BtcTurk, a cryptocurrency exchange, where perpetrators absconded with assets exceeding $100 million, as reported by PeckShield. Initial assessments by blockchain detective ZachXBT estimated the damages at roughly $55 million. Following in magnitude were the breaches at Lykke, a centralized exchange, with $22 million compromised, and UwU Lend, a DeFi lending platform, which reported a $19.4 million deficit.
**Crypto hack losses. Source: PeckShield**
Centralized exchanges were particularly vulnerable, accounting for the two largest losses in June, with DeFi protocols trailing closely behind.
**Centralized Exchanges: A Prime Target for Cyber-attacks**
May emerged as the peak month for crypto losses in 2024, with a staggering $385 million lost to cyber-attacks. The most substantial single incident involved the private key compromise of DMM, a crypto exchange, on May 31, leading to a $305 million Bitcoin (BTC) exfiltration.
The year’s losses fluctuated, with February reporting $360 million gone astray, while April presented the least damage at $60.19 million.
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Despite a reduction in June, the second quarter of 2024 witnessed a 115% surge in losses from cyber-attacks compared to the same timeframe in 2023. The previous year’s second quarter saw $220 million in losses, whereas the current year’s tally escalated to over $572 million.
Centralized exchange infiltrations constituted the bulk of this quarter’s financial casualties. Out of the total losses, centralized platforms and exchange breaches represented $401 million, accounting for 70%.
While centralized exchanges bore the brunt of the attacks this quarter, the data suggests that only a minority of the attempts were successful. Centralized entities faced exploitation five times, whereas decentralized platforms encountered 62 successful attacks.
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