$450 million lost to crypto scammers and hackers in H1 2023

Crypto ransomware attacks increased in the first half of 2023. However, scammers made 77% less money than in the same period in 2022, according to Chainalysis’ mid-year crypto-crime report.

Crypto Ransomware Attacks Rose in H1 Per Chainalysis

The report notes that crypto-ransomware attacks in 2023 rose after a downturn in 2022. In the first half of 2023 alone, ransomware attacks amounted to $449.1 million.

The results indicate that if this trend continues throughout the remainder of the year, ransomware attackers will likely exceed the $939.9 million extorted from victims in 2021, indicating a potential increase in revenue.

The update highlights an increase in both “very small” and “very large” ransomware payments in 2023. Of note, complex strains such as Cl0p and ALPHV/Blackcat, written in the Rust programming language, recorded an average payment size of 1 $730,486 and $1,504,579, respectively.

On the other hand, low-level ransomware strains including Dharma, Phobos, Stop/djvu, and BlackBasta reported average payment sizes of $265, $1,719, $619, and $762,634, respectively.

“It is clear that the ransomware ecosystem has rebounded in 2023 in terms of payments and attacks. The data is an important reminder that ransomware remains a significant threat and that companies must continue to strengthen their cybersecurity and data backup measures to provide additional protection.”

Reject cryptocurrency scams

In the first half of 2023, there was a significant decrease in cryptocurrency-related crime, as evidenced by lower inflows to illicit wallet addresses, despite multiple crypto fraud schemes and rug withdrawals.

Notably, scammers made 77% less money during this period than in the previous year. This decline can be attributed to the collapse of VidiLook and Chai Tai Tianqing, two fraud schemes that illegally extracted large sums of money from victims.

Although money transfers to impersonation scam organizers increased by 49% in the first half of 2023, the total amount lost was lower than the previous year, indicating fewer crypto investors falling victim to such schemes.

Chainalysis attributes the decrease in crypto-crime in the first half of 2023 to the concerted efforts of blockchain participants in the public and private sectors. Additionally, the proactive measures taken by law enforcement agencies played a major role in bringing hackers and scammers into custody.