According to crypto security firm CertiK, scams, exploits, and hacks are unlikely to decrease in the industry in 2023. CertiK spoke with this media outlet and said it does “not anticipate a respite in exploits, flash loans or exit scams.”
The firm highlighted the havoc caused in the space of cross-chain bridges in 2022. Six of the ten most significant exploits in 2022 were bridge exploits, resulting in the theft of $1.4 billion. With respect to recent incidents, CertiK predicts that in 2023 there would likely be further exploitation aimed at crypto bridges.
However, CertiK noted that given the knowledge of the Profanity tool weakness, there would probably be fewer brute-force assaults on crypto wallets. Users of Profanity, a vanity address generator for Ethereum, were attacked in September 2022. Attackers gained access to user wallets and stole $160 million worth of crypto. There was a flaw in the key-generation procedure for the wallet.
Nonetheless, the firm said that poor management of private keys could be the primary reason for wallet hacks in 2023.
According to peer security company ImmuneFi, a total of $10.2 billion was taken from Decentralized Finance (DeFi) protocols in 2021. Meanwhile, in 2022, crypto tokens worth $2.1 billion were stolen in just the ten worst cases.
Crypto to be handed over to more regulated institutions?
According to the World Economic Forum (WEF), “we could now see the handover of crypto technology and blockchain infrastructure to more regulated and established institutions.” Moreover, the global body believes that crypto and blockchain technology will continue to be integral to the economy.
Nonetheless, the WEF slammed regulators for failing to take proper action to stop the 2022 meltdowns. The body compared the previous year to the dot-com bubble of 2000. However, crypto adoption by known financial groups like JPMorgan will develop the asset class into “responsible, always-on” internet finance, according to the WEF.
At press time, the global crypto market cap stood at $839 billion, up by 1.2% in the last 24 hours.