Hackers exploit booming crypto market, laundering hits $1.3 billion in 2024

Crypto laundering from hacking activities skyrocketed in 2024, with $1.3 billion funneled through illicit methods.

On Jan. 13, blockchain security firm Peckshield reported a staggering 280% increase compared to the $342 million recorded in 2023. The firm stated that its analysis focused on incidents involving hack-related losses exceeding $1 million.

PeckShield noted that the booming market may have amplified the scale of laundering. For context, Bitcoin’s price more than doubled in 2024 to over $100,000 by December from $42,000 in January.

This market growth might have encouraged these criminals to scale up their laundering activities during the reporting period.

While blockchain’s transparency allows for more efficient tracking than traditional financial systems, this hasn’t deterred criminals from innovating. Their reliance on emerging tools and strategies shows how they adapt to avoid scrutiny.

Laundering techniques

Peckshield noted that malicious actors relied on techniques like chain hopping and coin mixing to obscure their stolen funds.

According to the firm, hackers moved $452 million through chain hopping and centralized exchanges, while $468 million passed through coin mixing platforms.

Chain hopping involves transferring assets across multiple blockchain networks to obscure their trail. Hackers often use several personal wallets as intermediaries to make detection even harder.

On the other hand, Coin mixing combines funds from various sources and distributes them in a way that disguises their origins.

Phishing tactics evolve

While laundering activities soared, Peckshield noted that losses from phishing attacks dropped by over 24% to $834.5 million in 2024 from $1.1 billion in 2023.

However, new phishing strategies have emerged, making these attacks harder to prevent. Advanced techniques such as social engineering, address poisoning, and approval phishing accounted for $600 million of the total losses.

Phishing scams often involve bad actors impersonating trusted entities to steal sensitive information or wallet access. Social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) remain a hotspot for these schemes, where attackers post misleading comments or links to fraudulent websites.

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