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Hackers have doubled their cryptocurrency loot in the first half of 2024 compared to last year, a report by blockchain research firm TRM Labs shows.
The report said $1.38 billion in cryptocurrencies were stolen between Jan. 1 and June 24, more than double the $657 million stolen in the same period last year. Like last year, a handful of major attacks drove the increase in stolen cryptocurrencies, with the five largest breaches accounting for 70% of the amount stolen in the first half of this year.
The top attack vectors in 2024 include private key and seed phrase hacks — a string of random words that stores the information needed to access or recover a crypto wallet — according to TRM Labs.
The largest heist so far this year saw over $300 million worth of Bitcoin stolen from Japanese cryptocurrency exchange DMM Bitcoin.
Hackers used stolen private keys or address poisoning — where attackers send a small amount of cryptocurrency from a wallet with a similar address that is designed to mimic yours or the recipient's address, with the goal of tricking the victim into sending funds to the wrong wallet.
Cryptographic addresses are long, complex strings of characters that are difficult to memorize or enter manually without making mistakes.
TRM Labs said there were no significant changes in the security of the cryptocurrency ecosystem that could have contributed to the increase in the amount stolen. It added that the number of attacks and attack vectors did not vary significantly from year to year.
But the company noted that cryptocurrency prices were higher on average in the first half of this year, which may have contributed to the rise in the value of the stolen cryptocurrencies.
Crypto companies have been frequent targets of hacks and cyber attacks.
Cryptocurrency exchange Mt. Gox declared bankruptcy in 2014 after a series of hacks that resulted in the theft of up to 950,000 bitcoins — worth more than $54 billion at today's prices.
In November, around $115 million was stolen from HTX Exchange and Heco Chain, two cryptocurrency exchanges linked to prominent businessman Justin Sun.
TRM Labs said crypto companies are able to combat breaches and exploits using a multi-layered defense strategy, including measures such as regular security audits and strong encryption.
She added that educating employees and implementing a comprehensive incident response strategy can also help protect businesses.
