A blockchain analytics firm based in Amsterdam has submitted a report that claims that hackers and scammers have stolen digital assets worth $7.6 billion since the start of 2011.
According to the report, the stolen digital assets were looked at based on two different aspects: digital assets stolen via hacks and the ones stolen via scams. Furthermore, the report claims that a total of $2.8 billion has been stolen by hackers worldwide.
This staggering figure has much of its bulk coming from breaches involving crypto exchange platforms. Since 2011, crypto exchanges worldwide have suffered nothing less than 100 hack attacks, which further shows that the stats have an iota of truth even if its genuity questioned.
The United States leads the most hacked platforms by country
The report claims that out of the over 100 crypto exchange platforms that suffered a security breach since 2011, Coincheck lost the most as the hackers carted away NEM coins worth around $535 million. In their analysis of stolen crypto via security breach according to countries, South Korea, Japan, China are leading the pack.
The United States and The United Kingdom also reported significant security breaches. However, The United States shows the list of countries that have witnessed hack attacks as the country’s crypto exchanges have been targets of hackers 13 times.
Furthermore, the report, which was prepared by Crystal Blockchain, said that around $4.8 billion worth of digital assets were stolen through scams. In the report, 23 famous cons that took place between 2011 and 2020 were mentioned.
According to the product director at the Blockchain firm, Kyrylo Cykhradze, the total amount of stolen cryptos across the years since 2011 was just summed up to be around $7.6 billion. Considering stolen tokens by value, China is sitting on top of the list with the PlusToken Ponzi scheme a major reason.
Hacked platforms had little security and user verification
China was said to have experienced two Ponzi schemes in the space of two years as the organizers of the PlusToken and WoToken scammed their investors off $2.9 billion and $1 billion, respectively. The report also claims that most outfits that suffered a loss of tokens via security breach had low-level security.
The study further pointed out that the firms were also nonchalant when it came to user verification, hence why the hackers could carry out their evil deeds. Noting their means of user verification, the report said that most f them just had verification via emails or phone numbers in place.
An in-depth look into Coincheck’s woes showed that the platform kept most of its users’ funds in a wallet, easily accessible to eternal networks. It also lacked significant security features that should have protected it, like multi-signature security, which would have been a stumbling block to the hackers.
With a multi-signature wallet, different high officeholders on the wallet would have to sign off before any withdrawal is made from the wallet. The report also claims that most of the hacks and scams that have been witnessed were during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown across different countries.
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