By Anjali Kochhar
In July, the cryptocurrency sector faced a staggering $266 million in losses due to 16 separate hacking incidents, with Indian exchange WazirX suffering the most significant blow. The hack, which occurred on July 18, resulted in WazirX losing over $230 million—accounting for 86.4% of the total crypto losses for the month. The breach has been linked to North Korean hackers, who employed sophisticated techniques to exploit vulnerabilities.
Blockchain investigation firm PeckShield reported that the stolen funds from WazirX, totaling 61,154 Ether (ETH), remain under the hackers’ control as of August 1. This theft highlights the increasing sophistication and impact of cyberattacks in the cryptocurrency space.
Other notable victims of July’s hacks include Compound Finance, which lost $24 million, and the Li.Fi bridging protocol, which suffered a $10 million loss. Decentralised AI protocol Bittensor and liquidity provider Rho Markets each faced $8 million in losses. The stolen funds were largely moved to crypto mixer Tornado Cash to obscure their origin and avoid detection.
In comparison, June experienced a lower level of hacking activity, with $176 million lost across approximately 20 incidents. The Terra blockchain also fell victim to a hack on July 31, leading to a temporary halt at block height 11430400. The hacker drained $6 million from Terra, including 60 million ASTRO, 500,000 USDT, 3.5 million USDC, and 2.7 Bitcoin (BTC). An emergency chain upgrade was swiftly implemented to address the vulnerability and resume normal operations.
Deddy Lavid, co-founder and CEO of Web3 security firm Cyvers, noted that centralised finance (CeFi) entities are currently the prime targets for crypto hackers. He also observed an increase in attacks on smart contract-based projects, attributing the rise in security vulnerabilities to both coding flaws and personal negligence.
Protecting digital assets from ever-more-sophisticated attackers requires increased security measures and constant awareness, as the crypto ecosystem continues to grow.
About the author
Anjali Kochhar covers cryptocurrency stories in India as well as globally. Having been in the field of media and journalism for over three years now, she has developed a sharp news sense and works hard to present information that goes beyond the obvious. She is an avid reader and loves writing on various subjects.
