Crypto hacks and fraud reached a record high in 2022, with incidents up 27.66% from 2021.
New research by CoinJournal looked at available data around major breaches and fraud since 2012 to reveal the countries experiencing fraud the most and how crypto fraud is increasing YoY.
You can view the full research here: https://coinjournal.net/crypto-fraud-report/
Year-on-year increase of crypto breaches and fraud:
Rank Year No. of Incidents GBP YoY Increase
1 2022 120 £1,866,240,500 27.66%
2 2021 94 £4,037,707,250 203.23%
3 2020 31 £1,299,391,750 19.23%
4 2019 26 £3,052,262,500 73.33%
5 2013 16 £12,383,465 14.29%
6 2018 15 £849,401,050 7.14%
7 2017 14 £563,360,450 180.00%
7 2012 14 £5,031,873 75.00%
• 2022 was the worst year for crypto fraud and breaches, with 120 different incidents occurring during the year. This was 26 more than the previous year, which equates to an increase of almost 28%.
• The most common crypto attack was DeFi breaches, happening 80 times in 2022 alone, accounting for over 66% of all incidents.
• The second most common type of crypto attack was fraud, with 36 frauds occurring in 2022, an increase of over 140% from 2021.The biggest fraud of 2022 was worth £53,940,000.
• The United States is the most commonly targeted country, with 13 hacks and breaches since 2011. The most recent was in July 2020 when hackers got into verified Twitter accounts and launched a fake donation campaign.
• The most costly crypto scam was by Plus Token, where almost $3 billion worth of Bitcoin and Ethereum was stolen.
• BSC was the most stolen coin in 2022, with the currency being stolen a total of 50 times. This was a 72% increase from 2021 when it was stolen just 29 times. The second most commonly stolen coin was ETH at 33 times.