Rho Markets, a liquidity layer and lending protocol on Scroll, has been exploited for over $7.6 million worth of USD Coin and USDT in another blow to the crypto industry.

The exploit occurred after a malicious actor gained access to the protocol’s blockchain oracle, as reported by blockchain security firm Cyvers in a July 19 post on X.

“@RhoMarketsHQ has announced that they have detected unusual activity on their platform on #Scroll chain and paused the platform! Root cause of this incident seems to be an oracle access control by a malicious actor!”

The hack comes days after Indian cryptocurrency exchange WazirX was hacked for $230 million worth of cryptocurrency, in the second-largest crypto heist of 2024 so far.

Related: Hamster Kombat users targeted by phishing attacks and fake airdrops

The second most lucrative week for crypto hackers in 2024

This week was the second most lucrative week for cryptocurrency hackers in terms of stolen funds.

On July 18, WazirX was hacked for over $230 million worth of cryptocurrency, and the attacker has already funneled $149 million worth of Shiba Inu ( SHIB ) tokens and other altcoins into Ether ( ETH ).

On July 16, the Li.Fi protocol suffered a hack that drained over $10 million worth of cryptocurrency from its wallet in a smart contract exploit that has since been contained.

Adding fuel to the fire, players of the viral Telegram-based clicker game Hamster Kombat were also targeted by phishing attacks and fake cryptocurrency airdrops, which aimed to steal user credentials, according to cybersecurity firm Kaspersky.

Related: Bitcoin analysts say 74K is the next stop for BTC price

Crypto hacks top $19 billion in 13 years

Crypto hacks are among the biggest issues in the decentralized finance space, hindering widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Over the past 13 years, since the first known crypto hack on June 19, 2011, nearly $19 billion worth of digital assets have been stolen in 785 reported hacks and exploits.

In February 2024, PlayDapp experienced a $290 million security breach, marking the largest single crypto heist of the past two years.

$3 billion stolen in hacks — Why are crypto crimes surging? Source: Cointelegraph

Moreover, crypto hacks in 2024 could potentially top 2023 , as the first quarter of 2024 saw $542.7 million worth of stolen funds, a 42% increase compared to the same period in 2023.

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