FBI Warns Investors Over Cybercriminals Exploiting DeFi Platforms

• The FBI warns of cybercriminals exploiting security flaws governing DeFi platforms.
• Hackers have stolen $1.3 billion worth of crypto, between January and March 2022.
• The FBI has urged investors in the US, targeted by hackers, to contact them through the Internet Crime Complaint Center.

Cybercriminals are increasingly exploiting security flaws in smart contracts governing decentralized finance platforms (DeFi) to steal cryptocurrency from investors, the U.S.  Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recently announced on Twitter.

In the recent announcement on the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, the agency said the exploits have caused investors to lose money — advising investors to conduct diligent research about DeFi platforms before using them. The government body also asked the platforms to improve their monitoring and conduct rigorous code testing.

Notably, hackers have stolen $1.3 billion worth of cryptocurrencies between January and March 2022, with almost 97 percent of that money coming from DeFi platforms, the FBI reported.

The FBI has urged investors in the United States, targeted by hackers, to contact them through the Internet Crime Complaint Center or their local FBI field office. Additionally, an officer also announced that the FBI was increasing efforts to address crime in the digital asset space through the formation of the Virtual Asset Exploitation Unit.

Additionally, recent research data reveals that DeFi users and investors have seen more than $12 billion in losses as a result of theft and fraud.

Through November of 2021, there was an estimated $10.5 billion worth of losses for the year, up from $1.5 billion in 2020. The damage is increasing threefold, with nearly $678 million lost in the DeFi ecosystem owing to bad actors in the second quarter of 2022, accounting for a 150 percent rise over the second quarter of 2020.