Crypto exchanges are popular targets for cyber attackers
By MYBRANDBOOK
Cryptocurrency exchanges have become a popular target for cyber criminals. Cyber criminals often deploy ransomware attacks by running code to encrypt data and then demanding payment in the form of cryptocurrency to release it. Since its launch in 2009, Bitcoin has become the world’s best-known and most popular cryptocurrency exchange, with more than 81 million users worldwide. Because Bitcoin lives in the digital world, Bitcoin users can send it anywhere in the world without any banking infrastructure or exchange fees, fostering peer-to-peer financial transactions.
As identities can be hidden in Bitcoin wallets, it is the obvious choice for cyber criminals to get what they want and remain anonymous. There are an estimated 106 million people worldwide who now use cryptocurrency exchanges. Created 13 years ago, the first cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, was relatively unheard of for the first years of its existence, only used by a small group who sought to retain a level of transactional anonymity. The second cryptocurrency was not created until two years later, but as of January 2022, there are over 8,000 different cryptocurrencies.
There is growing innovation from attackers in the space of cryptocurrency exchange attacks. Consumers, businesses and governments are finding new ways to use cryptocurrency, but a recent string of cyber-attacks has highlighted security risks and shortcomings. There is rising concern that “there will be a hack and my money will vanish”. According to blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis, the total value of cryptocurrencies held by illicit wallet addresses worldwide soared by 79% last year to $14 billion from $7.8 billion in 2020. Crypto investors lost over $2.8 billion globally to various crypto scams in 2021. Illicit address refers to wallets used for cyber-attacks, Ponzi schemes and other scams. In many instances, cybercriminals use channels such as WhatsApp and Telegram to scam young crypto owners with the promise of doubling their money.
In a few cases, we have seen employees of cryptocurrency exchanges sharing databases of cryptocurrency owners with cybercriminals, who use this information to start cyberattacks using SMS or even WhatsApp messages with phishing links to take over crypto accounts. It’s relatively easy for tech entrepreneurs to set up an exchange nearly anywhere in the world and run it however they like. This brings the opportunity for the hackers to make billions of dollars in virtual assets in the past year by compromising some of the cryptocurrency exchanges that have emerged during the bitcoin boom.
Exchanges are now lucrative targets for hackers. One of the biggest heists happened in early December, when the crypto trading platform Bitmart announced that hackers broke into a company account and stole almost $200 million. The company froze all customer transactions for three days before it allowed them to trade their money again.
BREAKING NEWS
TECHNO TRENDS
Nazara and ONDC set to transform in-game monetization with ‘
Nazara Technologies has teamed up with the Open Network for Digital Comme...
Jio Platforms and NICSI to offer cloud services to government
In a collaborative initiative, the National Informatics Centre Services In...
BSNL awards ₹5,000 Cr Project to RVNL-Led Consortium
A syndicate led by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (abbreviated as RVNL), along wi...
Pinterest tracks users without consent, alleges complaint
A recent complaint alleges that Pinterest, the popular image-sharing platf...
E-Magazine
TECHNOTAINMENT
Netflix adds 'Moments' feature for saving, sharing scenes from
Netflix has introduced a new “Moments” feature on its mobile app, whic
Jacqueline Fernandez come together with YouTuber Mr. Beast for
Jacqueline Fernandez has partnered with American YouTuber Mr. Beast to b
MOVERS & SHAKERS
Visa elevates Rishi Chhabra as new Country Manager for India
Rishi holds a Master’s in Industrial Engineering from The Ohio State Univ
Genesys welcomes Albert Nel as Senior VP and Regional Sales Le
Genesys continues to deepen its investment in the APAC region. Earlier this
OPEN YOUR EYES
INTERVIEWS
AMD Pensando driving innovation in the DPU architecture space
AMD Pensando stands out in the DPU (Data Processing Unit) market with its u
Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise Carrying a 100 year legacy ahead
A good amount of R&D works and global support services are operated out of
HOT PICK
SonicWall Launches TZ80: A Powerful Solution for Remote Office
SonicWall announced today the launch of the TZ80, a groundbreaking securit
Gigabyte X3D Turbo: A Gaming Revolution
GIGABYTE X3D Turbo Mode is a cutting-edge feature that unifies cores distr
MAKE IN INDIA BRANDS
WIPRO LTD.
SAMSUNG INDIA ELECTRONICS LTD.
DRUVA SOFTWARE PVT. LTD.
TECHROUTES NETWORK PRIVATE LIMITED
EMINENT CIO'S OF INDIA
ICONS OF INDIA
Icons Of India : PRATIVA MOHAPATRA
Prativa is a transformational leader with an incredible breadth of exp...
ICONS OF INDIA : SANDIP PATEL
Sandip Patel is the Managing Director for IBM India & South Asia regio...
Icons Of India : NATARAJAN CHANDRASEKARAN
Natarajan Chandrasekaran (Chandra) is the Chairman of Tata Sons, the h...
PARTNER SPEAKERS
PSU
C-DAC - Centre for Development of Advanced Computing
C-DAC is uniquely positioned in the field of advanced computing...
NPCI - National Payments Corporation of India
NPCI is an umbrella organization for operating retail payments and set...
TCIL - Telecommunications Consultants India Limited
TCIL is a government-owned engineering and consultancy company...
VIDEOS
Top 25 Brands
Global Indian industry
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Rajiv Ramaswami, President & CEO, Nutanix Technologies
Rajiv Ramaswami, President and CEO of Nutanix, brings over 30 years of...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - Satya Nadella, Chairman & CEO- Microsoft
Satya Nadella, the Chairman and CEO of Microsoft, recently emphasized ...
Indian Tech Talent Excelling The Tech World - ARVIND KRISHNA, CEO – IBM
Arvind Krishna, an Indian-American business executive, serves as the C...
STARNITE AWARDS 2024
ITFORUM 2024
CMO of the Year
WOMEN LEADERSHIP
IMAGE GALLERY
TRENDS IN TECHNOLOGY
MORE VIDEOS
ADVERTISEMENTS
TECHNOLOGY DISRUPTION
UNICORNS REVOLUTIONISING
