Cryptocurrency heists have been all the rage especially in 2017 and the first few months of this year. It has been one of the biggest problems in the crypto market and to put it into perspective, digital currency worth about $1.1 billion has been stolen in the first half of this year.
The report was released by a security firm called Carbon Black which stated that cybercriminals have been using the dark web to steal large amounts of cryptocurrencies. According to the company’s estimates, there are roughly 34,000 offerings and 12,000 marketplaces that are used by hackers for purposes such as cryptocurrency theft.
Rick McElroy, a security strategist at Carbon Black stated during a CNBC interview that it is surprisingly easy for people without tech skills to engage in cybercrime. According to McElroy, people can access hacking software for as somewhere between $1.04 and $224 and that such software is often provided with customer service.
Special software is used to access the dark web which allows users to remain anonymous and untraceable. Additionally, the report from Carbon Black states that Bitcoin heists can be orchestrated by criminal gangs or organized cartels. However, they are often carried out by highly trained engineers who are trying to find alternative income sources.
According to McElroy, one of the reasons why cybercrime is so rampant is that there are many graduates who have learned coding but the job opportunities are limited. This pushes people to pursue alternatives such as cybercrime. Unfortunately, the cryptocurrency market lacks institutional support to help cryptocurrency holders to protect their digital assets especially in case of fraud or malicious attacks.
Banks usually provide tools necessary to protect fiat currencies on behalf of their customers but cryptocurrency holders lack this kind of support. It is therefore important for crypto investors to learn the necessary steps they can take to secure their digital assets. Researchers reported that exchanges have become easy targets for cybercriminals this year and that they represent 27 percent of all cryptocurrency-related attacks. This includes malicious software used to mine cryptocurrencies. Such software has been used to take advantage of more than 40,000 computers in different industries.
