Decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols offer decentralized financial services to users, allowing them to make transactions and enter into agreements with other participants. While DeFi protocols aim to provide a secure and reliable platform for their users, several exploits within the past few years have caused significant losses of funds. This article will discuss some of the most extensive DeFi exploits that have occurred recently. March 2023 was an eventful month for the cryptocurrency space, with the Axie Infinity Ronin bridge hack topping the list at $612 million. Ronin bridge is an Ethereum side chain used in the popular play-to-earn game Axie Infinity. The cybercrime group Lazarus, suspected to have North Korean connections, managed to gain access to nine transaction validators’ private keys, allowing them to approve two large transactions and move the funds from their wallet address. Fortunately, a collaboration between authorities, security firms, and cryptocurrency exchanges was able to help track down some of these funds after the hackers spirited them to Tornado cash – an open-source crypto tumbler – and other exchanges.
Full report : Largest DeFi Exploits in Web3: How to Prevent Similar Security Breaches.
While these are the largest Web3 (DeFi, NFT and cryptocurrency) hacks that have happened, OODA has been compiling a comprehensive Web3 incident database based on our research to categorize what compromises are taking place as well as document the root causes that plague Cryptos, DeFi, NFTs, and Web3 in general. Tracking root causes provides comprehensive insights into how innovators can create robust cyber risk management approaches and reduce the potential for consequential attacks. You can access the OODA comprehensive Crypto Incident tracker here.