The number of cyberattacks centred around Blockchain technology, a transaction record database commonly used for cryptocurrency exchange, is on the rise, according to Cambridge-based IT security firm, The SecOps Group.
With just three hacks causing damage of almost US$1 billion so far this year, the pressure is on for Blockchain developers to identify and patch security issues before they get exploited in the wild. Fortunately, the security consultancy The SecOps Group has launched a Blockchain smart contract security audit to help them do just that.
There are two main methods of successful attack: one relies on social engineering tricks such as convincing a victim to send cryptocurrency to an attacker’s wallet; the second and more complicated type of hack requires a deep understanding of Blockchain smart contracts and associated components, such as side-chain, cross-chain, wallets, understanding of various protocols and more.
Three of the most recent and significant attacks on Blockchain were:
- Solana wallets attack – US$7 million- August 3 2022
- Axie Infinity Ronin bridge – US$625 million – March 28 2022
- Wormhole cross-chain bridge attack – US$325 million – February 2 2022
With smart contracts playing a key role in automating several processes within a Blockchain, running an audit to examine and analyse its code is now crucial for preventing attacks. Implemented effectively, it will help to discover errors, issues and security vulnerabilities in the code and suggest ways to fix them.
