More platforms targeted, less loot in 2023

Cyber ​​attacks linked to North Korea have been on the rise in recent years, with groups such as Kimsuki and the Lazarus Group using a variety of malicious tactics to acquire large amounts of crypto assets.

Last year, North Korea-linked hackers made off with around $1.7 billion in crypto theft.

North Korean Hackers: More Targets, Fewer Spoils in 2023

According to Chinalysis' latest analysis shared with CryptoPotato, in 2023, North Korea targeted more crypto platforms than ever before, although the total amount stolen was less than in 2022.

Despite this decline, the number of distribution hacks reached a record high of 20, coinciding with the overall decline in the crypto market.

In the year By 2023, Chainalysis estimates that the total stolen crypto will reach more than $1 billion. In particular, North Korean hackers targeted decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms, stealing approximately $428.8 million. Additionally, they focused on centralized services, exchanges, and wallet providers, stealing $150 million, $330.9 million, and $127 million, respectively.

In the year It's worth noting that North Korea's targeting of DeFi protocols by 2023 has dropped dramatically, reflecting the overall decline in DeFi-related hacking incidents.

DeFi attack vector

In the year While the number of individual theft incidents increased from 219 in 2022 to 231 in 2023, total stolen funds decreased by 54.3% to $1.7 billion in 2023, a significant decrease. In DeFi hacking events.

Over the past few years, the boom in stolen crypto has been fueled largely by hacking targeting DeFi protocols, which will reach over $3.1 billion in 2021 and 2022. However, by 2023, hackers managed to defraud only $1.1 billion from such protocols, which is a significant figure. Year-over-year, the total value stolen from DeFi platforms has decreased by 63.7%.

Additionally, there is a significant decrease in the share of all stolen funds stolen by victims of DeFi protocols in 2023.

The value lost to DeFi hackers decreased by 63.7% year over year in 2023, and the average loss of this exploit decreased by 7.4%. In the year While the overall number of crypto hacks increased in 2023, the number of DeFi exploits decreased by 17.2 percent.

In collaboration with partner Web3 and blockchain security institute Halborn, Chinalysis has identified two types of DeFi attack vectors: on-chain and off-chain.

Mar Gimenez-Aguilar, Halborn's Lead Security Architect and researcher, points out that most DFI hacks are caused by weaknesses in smart contract design and implementation. Many of the affected contracts were either unaudited or inadequately audited.

Another interesting trend is the increase in attacks due to hacked private keys, Gimenez-Aguilar emphasized the importance of improved security practices beyond the limited blockchain.