Q2 DeFi Hacks and Scams Cost Over $204M: Report

DeFi Hacks and Scams Result in $204 Million Loss in Q2 of 2023

More than $204 million was lost due to decentralized finance (DeFi) hacks and scams in the second quarter of 2023, as reported by Web3 portfolio app De.Fi on June 27.

The report, entitled “Q2 De.Fi Rekt Report,” drew on data from De.Fi’s “Rekt Database” to reveal that approximately $208.5 million was lost in the quarter, though $4.5 million was recouped through legal action, deals with cyber criminals, and other retrieval strategies.

According to the report, Q2 of 2023 saw a dramatic increase in DeFi hacks compared to the same quarter of 2022, with 117 incidents reported, almost seven times higher than the 17 reported the prior year. In total, more than $665 million was lost in the first half of the year.

The top five hacks of the second quarter targeted Atomic Wallet, Fintoch, MEV-Boost, Bitrue and GDAC. The June 3 exploit of Atomic Wallet caused a loss of $35 million, which was approximately 17% of the total. Additionally, Fintoch users were impacted by a rug pull, resulting in a loss of $30.6 million, and the MEV-Boost attack led to a $26.1 million deficit. Altogether, these three hacks were responsible for more than 45% of the total losses during Q2.

Top 5 Hacks of Q2 and Reward Offered for Returned Funds

Sturdy Finance is offering a reward of $100,000 to any hacker who is able to return the funds.

De.Fi reported that “access control issues” were the main source of losses, accounting for $75.8 million, or a quarter of the total. Exploits followed close behind, causing $55.3 million in losses. Additionally, users lost $47.3 million through rug pulls or exit scams in the second quarter.

In April, CertiK reported that losses from DeFi hacks and scams in the first quarter of the year (January to March) amounted to more than $320 million, which was actually lower than the losses incurred in the preceding quarter (Q1).