The crypto industry experienced its second-lowest monthly losses this month, November 2024, with $71 million lost across 26 incidents, according to blockchain security firm Immunefi.
This marked a significant improvement compared to November 2023, which recorded $343 million in losses, representing a 79% year-over-year drop and a 4% decrease month-over-month.
Year-to-date (YTD) figures show the industry lost $1.48 billion in 2024 due to hacks and rug pulls in 209 incidents. This represents a 15% decline compared to the $1.7 billion lost during the same period in 2023.
November hacks
According to Immunefi, two incidents accounted for most of November’s losses. DeFi project Thala Labs lost $25.5 million, while the memecoins trading terminal DEXX suffered a $21 million loss.
The firm noted that all reported cases for the month involved DeFi platforms, which surpassed centralized finance (CeFi) as the primary target. DeFi incidents accounted for 100% of the lost funds.
Meanwhile, hacks remained the leading cause of losses, with $70.99 million lost across 24 hacking incidents. Rug pulls contributed a smaller amount, with $25,300 lost in two cases.
Across chains, Binance-backed BNB Chain was the most targeted blockchain, responsible for nearly 47% of the total losses across all chains. It added:
“Ethereum experienced 9 incidents, representing 30% of the total. Solana, Polygon, Fantom, Avalanche, Arbitrum, and Aptos each experienced one incident, accounting for 3.3%, respectively.”
CEXs dominate 50% of 2024 crypto losses
Centralized exchanges (CEXs) have emerged as a significant target in 2024, accounting for almost 50% of total crypto-related losses year-to-date. Immunefi reported that CEX-related losses totaled $724 million, marking the highest share of attacks on centralized platforms since 2021.
The resurgence in CEX vulnerabilities became particularly evident during the third quarter of the year when 72% of crypto losses stemmed from CeFi hacks. For context, a single attack on Indian exchange WazirX in July resulted in a $235 million loss.
Immunefi highlighted that CeFi’s vulnerabilities often stem from compromised hot wallets, allowing attackers to drain substantial funds. The $724 million lost by CEXs in 2024 came from just nine incidents, whereas a similar amount in DeFi was spread across 200 attacks.
The security firm pointed out that blackhat hackers have adopted innovative methods to exploit centralized platforms.
These techniques include impersonating recruiters or securing fake job placements to infiltrate internal teams and infrastructure. Such threats often go undetected until significant damage occurs, underscoring their growing sophistication.
