In the recent attack on Orbit Chain’s cross-chain bridge, the cryptocurrency stolen in December 2023 surged to nearly $100 million, as confirmed by blockchain security firms. PeckShield, a blockchain security firm, disclosed that the exploit, amounting to $81.5 million on Orbit Bridge, elevated December to the fifth-highest month for hacks in 2023.
Identified as the ninth-largest hack targeting a cross-chain bridge in the last three years, the breach occurred due to an unauthorized access breach within Orbit Chain’s ecosystem on December 31 at 8:52 pm UTC. Orbit Chain, initiated in South Korea in 2018, promptly acknowledged the hack and on January 1st, urged major global cryptocurrency exchanges to freeze the stolen assets. The team assured ongoing collaboration with law enforcement to trace and freeze the stolen assets.
According to reports, the cumulative losses due to hacks, scams, and exploits in 2023 varied between $1.51 billion and $2 billion, estimated by blockchain security firms PeckShield, CertiK, and Beosin. September and November recorded substantial losses, eclipsing $700 million collectively. Notable incidents included Mixin Network’s $200 million loss in September, alongside significant exploits on Poloniex and HTX/Heco Bridges in November, with losses amounting to $131.4 million and $113.3 million, respectively.
Throughout the year, significant breaches were observed, such as Euler Finance’s $197 million exploit in March and Multichain’s $125 million breach in July.
Despite the surge in 2023’s losses, blockchain security firm Beosin highlighted a decline in hacks, phishing scams, and rug pulls compared to 2022. The total losses decreased from approximately $4.38 billion, with hacks reducing significantly from $3.6 billion in 2022 to $1.4 billion in 2023, marking a substantial decline of about 61.2%.