Cryptocurrency thefts exceeded $127 million in the third quarter of 2024, with September contributing approximately $46 million into the total.
On September 28, fraudsters exploited a permit phishing signature to steal 12,083 spWETH valued at $32.43 million, a significant incident that affected approximately 10,800 investors, according to Scam Sniffer, a Web3 security company.
These attacks typically involve deceiving users into connecting their crypto wallets, such as MetaMask, to counterfeit platforms, thereby enabling unauthorised access to funds. Alongside other cryptocurrencies, including Optimism, BNB, and Polygon, Ethereum was considered the primary target.
Two significant phishing incidents resulted in a total of $87 million in losses. According to MistTrack, a crypto monitoring and compliance service, the majority of phishing attacks are the result of malicious links on false social media accounts, particularly on X, as well as deceptive Google ads. Investors are encouraged to verify the authenticity of email addresses and URLs as fraud threats continue to escalate.
In Q3 2024, the broader crypto cybercrime landscape also experienced substantial losses, with a total of $753 million. CertiK, a cybersecurity firm, reported a 9.5% increase in financial damages across 155 incidents. Ethereum was once again the target of 86 attacks, resulting in a loss of over $387 million. In a startling decline from 14.4% in the previous quarter, the recovery rate for misappropriated assets has dropped to a mere 4.1%.
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