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Data show that bad actors stole roughly $3.23 million worth of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in April, a 68% decrease from the $10.9 million worth of stolen digital collectibles sold last month.
While blockchain-based digital collectibles or NFTs have grown in popularity in recent years, the industry has also become a prime target for bad actors due to the often exorbitant prices of these crypto assets.
#PeckShieldAlert In Apr. 2023, ~$3.23M worth of #NFTs were stolen, representing a 68% decrease from the previous month.
— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) May 1, 2023
Half of the stolen NFTs were quickly sold on marketplaces within 2 hours.
Around 70% of the stolen NFTs were first sold on @blur_io, followed by @opensea… pic.twitter.com/RCmktf1eu9
According to the blockchain analytics platform, PeckShieldAlert, roughly $3.23 million worth of NFTs were stolen by bad actors last month. While that amount may sound alarming, it represents a 68% decrease from the $10.9 million worth of NFTs stolen in March 2023. The highest amount ($16.2m) of NFTs was stolen in February.
Regarding $NFT marketplaces, Blur is the preferred platform for $NFT thieves. About 70% of the stolen digital collectibles were sold on Blur, followed by OpenSea (27.94%).
Hacks and $NFT phishing scams on the rise
Bad actors often use various methods to steal the digital collectibles of innocent $NFT holders, including phishing attacks and hacking.
Last January, hackers hijacked the Twitter account of the Azuki project, stealing more than $750k worth of NFTs. In February, the Bored Ape $NFT worth 89.9 ETH (about $147,800) was stolen via a phishing attack.