Crypto theft surges in 2024 amid market rebound

An amount of $1.38 billion in cryptocurrency was embezzled by hackers up to June 24, 2024, according to weekly research from blockchain researchers TRM Labs. A figure more than double what had already been stolen at $657 million in the same period in 2023.

This increase was driven by a small number of large-scale attacks and the rebound of the prices of crypto. The median size of theft was one and a half times larger compared to the year before.

"While we have not seen any fundamental changes in the security of the cryptocurrency ecosystem, we have seen a significant increase in the value of various tokens - from bitcoin to ETH (ether) and Solana - compared to the same time last year," said Ari Redbord, global head of policy at TRM Labs.

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This, according to Redbord, points to a trend of cybercriminals becoming more emboldened against crypto services with higher rewards awaiting them at the end of their successful attacks.

Cryptocurrency prices have largely recovered from the lows experienced in late 2022, following the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried's crypto exchange, FTX. Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency, reached a new all-time high of $73,803.25 in March this year.

This year also had one of the biggest crypto heists on record, with losses of over $308 million, from Japanese crypto exchange DMM Bitcoin, which the firm labelled an "unauthorised leak." Although such voluminous losses are rare, cryptocurrency platforms continue to be very sensitive targets for cybercriminals.

The scale of the pilferages has risen alongside recent spikes in crypto prices, highlighting growing risks within the digital currency industry. Industry players are going to have to up their game in security from thereon to protect the digital currency and keep customer trust from falling apart.