2024 proved to be another challenging year for blockchain security, with nearly $3 billion lost to crypto hacks, according to Hacken’s latest research report.
Summary of Blockchain Security in 2024
The year 2024 was challenging for blockchain security, as the total loss from crypto hacks amounted to nearly $3 billion, similar to the losses in 2023. However, there was a sharp increase in attacks exploiting access control vulnerabilities.
Access Control Vulnerabilities
Hacken’s data shows access control vulnerabilities turned out to be the biggest threat, accounting for 78% of losses. These flaws affected a wide range of sectors, including decentralized finance, centralized finance, and gaming/metaverse platforms.
Sectoral Losses
According to the report, access control vulnerabilities caused 75% of crypto hack losses, excluding phishing. DeFi accounted for 20.4% of total hack losses, while CeFi losses made up 30%. The gaming and metaverse sectors also faced major losses, totaling $389 million — about 20% of all crypto hack damages. Meanwhile, cross-chain bridge-related losses saw a notable drop to $117 million.
Hacken claims the data was sourced from verified crypto project reports, including platforms like X, post-mortems, and databases. This highlights the need for comprehensive security strategies.
