BLOCKCHAIN SECURITY
BNB Smart Chain's Remarkable 85% Security Triumph in 2023
BNB Smart Chain's security enhancements in 2023 led to an 85% reduction in financial losses from security incidents, a striking contrast to the previous year's $1.1 billion losses.
Significant Crypto Hacks in December 2023, with Orbit Bridge Exploit Leading the Surge
In December 2023, a significant increase in crypto thefts was triggered by an $81.5 million attack on Orbit Bridge, marking one of the largest attacks on cross-chain bridges in recent years.
Ethereum Foundation Suffered from MEV Bot Attack in Eth Selling
The Ethereum Foundation suffered a Sandwich attack by an MEV Bot during a 1.7k ETH transaction on Uniswap V3, resulting in a $9,101 loss. The incident spotlights the rising menace of MEV exploits and underlines the necessity for enhanced security protocols in blockchain transactions.
BlockSec Launches Phalcon Fork for Private Chain Collaborative Testing
Blockchain security firm BlockSec has launched the Phalcon Fork toolkit for collaborative testing on private chains forked from the Ethereum mainnet. The toolkit provides more control for developers over testing, analysis, and debugging of transactions, while retaining services and states from the Ethereum mainnet. It also includes an integrated faucet for free fork network Ether (ETH) and Fork RPC for integration with Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible development frameworks.
Allbridge Recovers $465,000 Stolen in Crypto Exploit
Allbridge has recovered $465,000 worth of cryptocurrency stolen in a recent exploit, after the attacker apparently took the project's offer for a white hat bounty and returned the funds. The stolen funds were converted to Binance USD and used as compensation. Allbridge had previously offered the attacker a chance to escape legal repercussions and receive a bounty for finding vulnerabilities. The project has yet to publicly disclose the total amount stolen but blockchain security firms estimate it to be close to $550,000.
Rogue Validator Outsmarts MEV Bots, Resulting in a $25 Million Loss
MEV bots attempting sandwich trades lost $25 million worth of digital assets to a rogue validator. The loss included Wrapped Bitcoin, USD Coin, Tether, Dai, and Wrapped Ether. Blockchain security firm CertiK explained that the attack was due to the centralization of power with validators, making them vulnerable to such attacks.
Euler Finance Audited 10 Times Before $196 Million Attack
Euler Finance, an Ethereum-based lending protocol, underwent 10 audits from six different firms in two years before it suffered a $196 million flash loan attack. Despite this, the audits deemed the platform "nothing higher than low risk" with "no outstanding issues." The attack prompted Euler to launch a $1 million bounty for information leading to the hacker's arrest, only for them to move the funds through crypto mixer Tornado Cash.
Crypto Industry Continues to Experience Hacks and Exploits: Can Increased Security Measures Help?
Despite recent recoveries, $4bn was lost to hacks, fraud, and scams in 2022. Increased security measures, such as DeFi and multi-signature wallets, can help.
Blockchain Security Startup BlockSec Pulls $8m in Seed+ Funding Round
Blockchain security startup, BlockSec has announced it has completed a new seed plus funding round where it pulled the sum of $8 million from top investors.
CertiK Raises $60m In New Funding in Two Weeks
The new fund comes just two weeks after CertiK mopped up $88 million Series B3 round as the blockchain company continues to beef up its business offerings.