Peckshield: Cryptocurrency Hackers Stole Over $360 Million in February

Cryptocurrency hackers stole over $360 million during February, almost doubling the amount stolen in January. According to Peckshield, a cryptocurrency and blockchain security firm, the largest hack event in February involved a security breach in Playdapp, a Web3 gaming platform, that lost $290 million four days after being attacked. Fixedfloat, a cryptocurrency exchange, also lost $25.85 million in another hack.

Cryptocurrency Attacks Caused Losses Over $360 Million in February, According to Peckshield

Cryptocurrency hackers had a very profitable February. According to Peckshield, a cryptocurrency and blockchain security and auditing firm, $360.83 million were stolen by cryptocurrency hackers in 21 attacks during February, almost doubling the amount stolen in January.


Peckshield reported that the largest attack performed in January involved Playdapp, a crypto gaming platform, which lost millions worth of its PLA cryptocurrency in a security breach. First, the attacker minted over $30 million of this cryptocurrency using an unauthorized wallet. This led security researchers to believe a private key breach could be the event’s origin.
But later, the exploit allowed the attacker to mint over 1.59 billion PLA tokens worth $253.9 million, totaling more than $290 million lost by the gaming platform. Playdapp sent a message to the attacking party, offering to give a bounty of $1 million to return the funds stolen, but it failed to achieve the objective. The funds were later laundered using different platforms.

Fixedfloat, a swift no-KYC cryptocurrency exchange, also suffered an attack that paralyzed its platform, causing losses of almost $26 million in bitcoin and ether. The exchange has been tight-lipped, recently stating that it is open to talking with journalists about the attack and stressing it is ready for an “open dialogue and cooperation in order to avoid publications with false information.”
The third largest attack was perpetrated against Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin, a co-founder of the cryptocurrency play-to-earn game Axie Infinity. He lost almost $10 million worth of ether from his accounts. The funds were later linked to activity on Tornado Cash, a token-mixing platform that obfuscates the origin and destiny of the tokens transacted.
What do you think about the biggest hacks and attacks perpetuated in February? Tell us in the comments section below.