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Illicit crypto activities have declined this year, according to Chainalysis Report

According to crypto data firm, Chainalysis, illicit crypto activities have declined and the cumulative revenue of cryptocurrency scammers in 2022 is currently 65% lower than the record in July last year.

By Anna B Kiwanuka

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The blockchain data analytics company Chainalysis released its mid-year cryptocurrency crime report titled “Illicit Activity Falls With the Rest of Market, with Some Notable Exceptions.” recently.

According to the report, illicit cryptocurrency transaction volume decreased by 15% alongside legitimate transactions due to the general price drops in the market. As a result, total scam revenue this year now sits at $1.6 billion, which is 65% lower than the level seen in July 2021.

The company stated in its report, “In comparison to respectable quantities, which are down 36% year over year, illicit volumes are down just 15%. Total scam profit for 2022 currently rests at $1.6 billion, and 65% lower than what it was a mid-2021, and this reduction looks tied to declining pricing across different currencies.” 

The organization also pointed out that, so far in 2022, there have been fewer individual transfers to schemes than at any time in the previous four years.

These numbers suggest that the number of victims of the bitcoin scam is declining. This condition may result from the falling value of assets, which makes potential victims less interested in falling for bitcoin scams.

The blockchain data platform also stated that darknet marketplace revenue is currently 43% behind the previous high set in July of last year. Following the closing of Hydra Marketplace, which was acting as the main harbor for illegal performers, the proceeds significantly decreased in April.

The research also reveals that, despite a general decline in revenue from cryptocurrency scams and darknet operations, losses from the hacking of the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol are still increasing.

According to the report, up to $1.9 billion in crypto assets have been stolen from the DeFi sector due to protocol exploits through July 2022. As of July 2021, only a total of $1.2 billion in protocol exploits was recorded, thereby setting the new record 58% higher. DeFi protocols are more susceptible to attacks given that the codebase is usually open source, which hackers can study for even the slightest flaw to steal crypto assets.

Chainalysis also emphasized that this trend doesn’t appear to be reversing any time soon, with a $190 million hack of cross-chain bridge Nomad and a $5 million hack of several Solana wallets already occurring in the first week of August.


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