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Decentralized Finance (DeFi) has revolutionized how we interact with money, offering open access to financial services like lending, trading, and yield farming without intermediaries. But this innovation hasn’t come without risks. From the $600M Poly Network hack to smart contract exploits and rug pulls, DeFi’s meteoric rise has been shadowed by a cascade of security failures. Now, a new chapter is unfolding: the Security Ramp-up in DeFi . The space is evolving fast, and security is no longer an afterthought—it’s a frontline strategy. Let’s explore how DeFi is stepping up its game to protect users, protocols, and the very future of decentralized finance. Why Security Became the Priority The total value locked (TVL) in DeFi protocols once surpassed $200 billion. But with every major exploit, confidence wavers. In 2022 alone, DeFi accounted for over 82% of all crypto losses due to hacks (according to Chainalysis). Each attack has highlighted weaknesses in smart contract...

A new wave of innovative tokens is making waves, capturing the attention of traders and investors alike. Whether you’re deep into DeFi, fascinated by AI, or simply chasing the next big thing, some coins are standing out above the rest. The rise of Eagle AI, Basenji, and Crash is more than just a trend. It’s a glimpse into what’s next for crypto, where technology, creativity, and financial empowerment come together. The real question is: which one will define the future? Most Trending Cryptocurrencies on Base Chain Now With their distinct contributions, Eagle AI, Basenji, and Crash are spearheading the effort. Eagle AI creates more intelligent, data-driven solutions for the digital economy by fusing blockchain technology with artificial intelligence. Basenji isn’t just another meme coin; it blends humor with real utility, turning internet culture into a thriving ecosystem. Meanwhile, Crash is all about transparency and security, tackling the most significant is...

Bitcoin’s (BTC) mining revenue plunges to new lows following the halving event, raising concerns about the network’s security and profitability for miners. Daily revenue from Bitcoin mining has dramatically fallen to under $3 million from an average of roughly $6 million in early 2024, marking a significant decline. This downturn follows the Bitcoin halving on April 20, 2024, which reduced the block reward from 6.25 BTC to 3.125 BTC, effectively halving the miners’ income from block rewards. Despite a brief surge in transaction fees due to the introduction of a new token standard called Runes, which spiked the daily transaction fees to an all-time high of $78.3 million on April 20, the hype was short-lived. Picks for you Astar Network offers a new grant for token launches on Astar zkEVM 40 mins ago Opportunity? Bitcoin reconfirms $150,000 target 43 mins ago Silent Protocol unveils Ghost Layer, a modular Layer 1.5 for Ethereum 1 hour ago This So...

Gamma Strategies, an Ethereum-based asset management protocol, is currently grappling with a security breach that has led to a potential loss of 211.9 ETH. On Jan. 4, blockchain analysis firm PeckShield identified an exploit estimated to be worth about $469,000 in an attack against Gamma Strategies. Shortly after the decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, Gamma, acknowledged a “potential security issue” while reassuring users that they were still able to withdraw their funds as necessary. We're monitoring and reacting to a possible security incident. Please be patient while we take security precautions to assess the issue. If you needwith draw our front end is still up at https://t.co/p5JwV003JJ — Gamma (@GammaStrategies) January 4, 2024 Two hours later, in a subsequent post on X, the company stated it would provide additional details regarding the incident once its investigation was complete. Meanwhile, amidst the ongoing confusion, a fraudulent X acco...

While ChatGPT-4 can’t compete with human auditors yet, OpenZeppelin noted it was not optimized to do so, and AI models trained for this purpose would likely be more accurate. While generative artificial intelligence (AI) is capable of doing a vast variety of tasks, OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4 is currently unable to audit smart contracts as effectively as human auditors, according to recent testing. In an effort to determine whether AI tools could replace human auditors, blockchain security firm OpenZeppelin’s Mariko Wakabayashi and Felix Wegener pitted ChatGPT-4 against the firm’s Ethernaut security challenge.  Although the AI model passed a majority of the levels, it struggled with newer ones introduced after its September 2021 training data cutoff date, as the plugin enabling web connectivity was not included in the test. Ethernaut is a wargame played within the Ethereum Virtual Machine consisting of 28 smart contracts — or levels — to be hacked. In other words, levels are completed once the...

The 2018 MIT professor Gary Gensler didn’t think most ICOs triggered U.S. securities laws. The crypto community is calling out the hypocrisy of Gary Gensler, the head of the United States securities regulator, after a 2018 video emerged of him stating that cryptocurrencies are on par with commodities or cash and are not securities. The video came from a “Blockchain and Money” class in the Fall Semester of 2018 taught by Gensler, a former professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) before he became chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). On the topic of initial coin offerings (ICOs), Gensler said that "three-quarters of the market are not ICOs or not what would be called securities" and named the U.S., Canadian and Taiwanese markets as the "three jurisdictions that follow something similar to the Howey Test." "Three-quarters of the market is non-securities, it's just a commodity, cash,crypto,” Gensler then said. The below cli...

A new NFT warranty service says that protecting collectible digital assets of value can help provide “a sense of security and trust” and encourage new users. The Web3 space has seen its fair share of exploits in the recent past with more than $320 million exploited by hackers in the first quarter of 2023 alone. For many users, particularly prospective users, having security for digital assets is a top priority.  A new nonfungible token (NFTs) warranty service from Web3 payment provider Wert and InsurTech service Avata is trying to troubleshoot the gap in asset Security for collectors both active and prospective. According to the announcement the opt-in warranty for NFTs will cover up to 90% of the value of the digital assets for any NFTs that are compromised at the hands of a smart contract hack. Cointelegraph spoke with George Basiladze, the co-founder and CEO of Wert, who said a solution like this helps bridge the "trust" gap, while offering needed protection to an array o...

Join Our Telegram channel to stay up to date on breaking news coverage This week, the collapse of FTX allegedly took a hazardous turn when Sam Bankman-Fried‘s counsel asserted that a motorist rammed a car into the barricade at his parents ’ house and that the people inside the car shouted ominous threats. In a letter delivered on Thursday to U.S. Federal Judge Lewis Kaplan by Bankman-Fried’s counsel, it is claimed that a black car recently collided with a metal barricade outside the Palo Alto, California, residence where he is currently under house arrest. You won’t be able to keep us out. “You won’t be able to keep us out,” three unidentified men allegedly said to a security guard after getting out of the car and leaving. The letter omitted mentioning the claimed incident’s date. On December 22, a New York judge ordered Bankman-Fried, who had been detained after being arrested in the Bahamas and extradited to the US the week ...