'Less sophisticated' malware is stealing millions: Chainalysis

cointelegraph.com:

Cryptojacking accounted for 73% of the total value received by malware related addresses between 2017 and 2021, according to a new malware report from blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis.

Malware is used to conduct nefarious activity on a victim’s device such as a smartphone or PC after being downloaded without the victim’s knowledge. Malware-powered crime can be anything from information-stealing to denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks or ad fraud on a grand scale.

The report excluded ransomware, which involves an initial use of hacks and malware to leverage ransom payments from vicitms in order to halt the attacks. Chainalysis stated:

Chainalysis’ Jan. 19 report focuses on the various types of crypto-malware, excluding ransomware, used over the last decade such as info stealers, clippers, cryptojackers and trojans, noting that they are generally cheap to acquire and even “low-skilled cybercriminals” can use them to siphon funds from their victims.

Cryptojacking tops the list of value received via malware at 73%, Trojans were ranked second at 19%, ‘Others’ totalled 5% while information stealers and clippers represented a mere 1% each.

According to Chainalysis, malware addresses send the “majority of funds on to addresses at centralized exchanges,” but note that figure is declining. As of 2021, exchanges only received 54% of funds from those addresses compared to 75% in 2020 and around 90% in 2019.

The report looked at the prolific Hackboss clipper that has stolen around $560,000 since 2012 by infecting user's clipboards to steal and replace information. It found that the “Cryptobot” infostealer was significant source source of ill-gotten gains in 2021, generating $500,000 worth of Bitcoin (BTC) from around 2,000