According to the latest onchain security report, the majority of cryptocurrencies that have been hacked struggle to recover their market value. The report highlights some concerning statistics regarding the lasting impact of these security breaches.
The report reveals that over 77.8% of hacked cryptocurrencies experience a sustained negative impact on their price six months following the exploit. This data underscores a significant challenge for projects that face security breaches.
Moreover, 51.1% of hacked tokens endure price declines of over 50% six months after the attack. This information comes from an Immunefi report shared with Cointelegraph.
Mitchell Amador, founder and CEO of Immunefi, explains that the damage from hacks often extends beyond immediate financial losses. According to Amador:
“The millions lost to the hack immediately anticipate even larger losses, caused by market impact and dependency impact, alongside many months of lost time spent rebuilding your emotionally shattered team and operations.”
The report’s release follows a significant incident involving WazirX, an Indian cryptocurrency exchange, which was recently targeted by a hacker. The breach, the second-largest cryptocurrency hack of 2024, resulted in the theft of over $230 million. This highlights the growing sophistication and impact of cryptocurrency hacks in the current landscape.
Shift from DeFi to CeFi Vulnerabilities
Historically, decentralized finance (DeFi) applications were the primary targets for digital asset exploits. However, the focus has shifted to centralized finance (CeFi) infrastructure. According to Amador, CeFi infrastructure now represents the biggest vulnerability in the crypto space, with a significant portion of losses in 2024 attributed to it.
“Infrastructure compromises tend to be the most devastating hacks in the cryptocurrency world. For example, a leaked private key will lead to the theft of all funds controlled by it,” Amador stated.
From the $1.19 billion worth of digital assets stolen in 2024 so far, $636 million is due to CeFi vulnerabilities. This shift in targeting is largely due to the substantial funds involved, which can result in hundreds of millions in stolen assets.
Hackers are increasingly focusing on CeFi infrastructure like crypto exchanges because of the substantial amounts of money that can be stolen in a single breach. This trend highlights the need for enhanced security measures within these systems to protect against large-scale losses.
Resilient Cryptocurrencies Post-Hack
While many cryptocurrencies struggle to recover from hacks, some show greater resilience. Tokens from established projects with strong teams tend to fare better. According to Amador, projects such as BNB Chain, SushiSwap, THORChain, Olympus, and Optimism have demonstrated notable recovery.
“Recovered tokens include projects like BNB Chain, SushiSwap, THORChain, Olympus, and Optimism. All of these projects are either huge ecosystems themselves, such as BNB Chain or Optimism, or are longstanding protocols like SushiSwap, which have a dedicated community,” Amador explained.
These projects benefit from their larger ecosystems, which provide more buying power and support following a crisis.
Crypto hacks continue to be one of the biggest barriers to widespread cryptocurrency adoption. The amount of stolen funds in 2024 is on track to exceed the previous year’s figures. By February 29, over $200 million had been lost to hacks year-to-date, marking a more than 15% increase compared to the same period in 2023, when $173 million worth of digital assets were stolen.
| Incident | Amount Stolen | Type | Impact on Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| WazirX Hack | $230 million | CeFi | Significant |
| Other CeFi Hacks | $636 million | CeFi | Significant |
| Total Stolen | $1.19 billion | – | – |
Featured image credit: flatart via Freepik
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