Mriganka Pattnaik, co-founder and CEO of crypto risk and intelligence platform Merkle Science, has stated that though smart contract vulnerabilities remain a security concern, the growing number of financial losses and hacks in the crypto sector cannot be linked to them.
According to Pattnaik, hackers are shifting their focus to other areas, and the main worry is the rising trend of losses caused by private key leaks. He noted that private key leaks, which are largely caused by phishing attacks and insecure storage practices, are a prime target for hackers.
As per Merkle Science’s 2024 HackHub report, funds lost due to smart contract vulnerabilities saw a 92% decrease to $179 million in 2023 from $2.6 billion in 2022. Private key leaks accounted for over 55% of the lost digital assets during 2023.
Pattnaik explained that the decrease in smart contract attacks can be attributed to two factors: increased competition among hackers for easier targets and the utilization of advanced security tools. These tools play a crucial role in identifying and addressing vulnerabilities in smart contracts before they can be exploited.
Hackers and cryptocurrency exploiters stole $542.7 million worth of digital assets in the first quarter of 2024, a 42% increase over the same period in 2023.
According to a recent by blockchain analytics platform PeckShield, over $574 million of digital assets were destroyed in 30 separate crypto attacks during May 2024, indicating a 666% month-over-month rise.
Notably, the soaring value of cryptocurrencies is attracting a growing number of hackers who see the potential for higher rewards in exploiting them. With the surge in crypto asset values, successful exploits can yield much larger sums of stolen funds compared to previous years. The overall market capitalization of all cryptocurrencies increased by 54% year-to-date (YTD).
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