Cryptocurrencies have been gaining traction in the last few years, and with that comes a rise in bitcoin hacks and exploits. As investors pour their money into digital assets, so do malicious hackers. This article will look at the 10 largest hacks and exploits in the crypto industry to date. From the infamous Mt Gox hack to more recent attacks on exchanges such as Binance, we will explore why these events happened and how companies are responding to them. We'll also talk about what you can do to protect yourself against similar attacks in the future.

Bitcoin hacks have become increasingly common in recent years as the cryptocurrency has become more popular.

With several high-profile hacks occurring. The most notable of these is the Mt. Gox hack in 2014, which saw hackers steal $460 million worth of Bitcoin from the exchange’s customers. This was a major blow to the industry’s trust and security, leading to increased scrutiny over exchanges and their storage systems for digital currency. Other high-profile hacks include those targeting Bitfinex in August 2016 ($72 million stolen), Coincheck in January 2018 ($500 million stolen) , and Bithumb in June 2018 (over $30 million stolen). These incidents have highlighted just how vulnerable some digital currency exchanges can be if they don’t take adequate steps to protect user funds from malicious actors.

Mt. Gox

Mt. Gox was the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange when it collapsed in early 2014. The Tokyo-based company lost 850,000 bitcoins – then worth around $480 million – and filed for bankruptcy. It later emerged that Mt. Gox had been hacked several times previously and that its CEO, Mark Karpelès, had covered up the thefts. Karpelès was eventually arrested and charged with embezzlement and fraud.

Bitfinex

Bitfinex is one of the most popular cryptocurrency exchanges, and has been involved in a number of high-profile hacks and exploits. In 2016, the exchange was hacked for $72 million worth of Bitcoin, and in 2019, it was revealed that the exchange had lost $850 million due to an accounting error.

Coincheck

In January 2018, Japanese cryptocurrency exchange Coincheck was hacked, resulting in the loss of over $500 million worth of digital assets. The attack was one of the largest and most damaging hacks in the history of cryptocurrency.

Coincheck had been lax in its security measures, and the hackers were able to exploit this to their advantage. The hack highlights the importance of proper security measures for cryptocurrency exchanges.

Bithumb

Bithumb, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was hacked in June 2018. The hackers stole over $30 million worth of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Ripple. The hack was carried out by a group of North Korean hackers who exploited a flaw in the exchange's security system.

DAO

The DAO was a digital decentralized autonomous organization and a form of investor-directed venture capital fund. The DAO had an objective to provide a new decentralized business model for organizing both commercial and non-profit enterprises. It raised over US$150 million worth of ether from 11,000 investors in May 2016. In June 2016, The DAO was exploited by an unknown attacker, who stole US$50 million worth of ether. The event caused a hard fork in the Ethereum blockchain, with the new chain retaining the immutability principle from the original blockchain.

Parity Wallet

Parity is a digital currency wallet available for download on Windows, Mac and Linux computers. It allows users to store, receive and send Parity tokens. Parity also enables users to buy and sell tokens on exchanges using the built-in Parity Exchange.

Parity was created by the team behind the popular cryptocurrency Zcash hacks exchange Kraken. The wallet was designed to provide Kraken users with a convenient way to store their tokens offline in a secure location. However, the Parity wallet has been hacked several times since its inception, leading to the loss of millions of dollars worth of digital currency.

The most recent hack occurred in November 2017, when a hacker exploit allowed them to gain control of over $150 million worth of Ethereum Classic (ETC) from Parity wallets. This attack resulted in the hard fork of the Ethereum blockchain, which led to the creation of Ethereum Classic (ETC).

Other notable hacks include:

• July 2017 - A hacker stole over $30 million worth of Ethereum (ETH) from Parity wallets by exploiting a flaw in the software code.

• August 2016 - A hacker stole $155 million worth of ETH from The DAO, a decentralized autonomous organization built on top of the Ethereum blockchain. The funds were eventually returned to investors after a hard fork of the Ethereum blockchain.

Bitstamp

In 2015, Bitstamp, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, was hacked and $5 million worth of Bitcoin was stolen. The hack was made possible by a phishing attack in which employees were tricked into giving up their login credentials. Bitstamp was able to quickly recover from the attack and resumed operations within a few days.

Gatecoin

1. Gatecoin:

In 2016, Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange Gatecoin was hacked, with the attackers making off with $2 million worth of Bitcoin hacks and Ethereum. The attack was carried out via a third-party service that Gatecoin was using to store its funds, and it highlighted the risks that exchanges face when entrusting their coins to a third party.

Cryptopia

1. Cryptopia

Cryptopia was a New Zealand-based cryptocurrency exchange that was hacked in January 2019. The attack resulted in the loss of over $16 million worth of various cryptocurrencies. Cryptopia was unable to recover from the hack and eventually went into liquidation.

Zaif

Zaif was one of the largest crypto hacks in 2018. The Japanese exchange lost $60 million in Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Monacoin. The hack was caused by a security flaw in the exchange's hot wallet.