CertiK CEO Discusses Blockchain Security Threats and Defense Strategies

Blockchain security has become a key issue in the rapidly evolving Web 3.0 field. As an industry-leading security company, CertiK is committed to comprehensively enhancing the security protection of the blockchain ecosystem through innovative technologies. The company's co-founder and CEO, who is also a professor of computer science at Columbia University, recently gave an interview where he discussed in detail the current challenges facing blockchain security and the strategies to address them.

CertiK was founded in 2017, with the core idea of utilizing formal verification technology to continuously monitor and enhance the security of Blockchain protocols and smart contracts. To date, the company has served over 4,900 enterprise clients, protecting more than $530 billion in digital assets and identifying over 115,000 code vulnerabilities.

According to CertiK's latest security report for the first quarter of 2025, losses from on-chain fraud incidents amounted to approximately $1.66 billion, a staggering increase of 303% compared to the previous quarter. Among these, Ethereum remains the primary target of attacks, with just three security incidents resulting in asset losses of $1.54 billion. Even more concerning is that the recovery rate for stolen assets is only 0.38%.

In the face of increasingly complex attack methods, the blockchain security industry is actively responding. Innovative technologies such as Zero-Knowledge Proofs (ZKP), on-chain security, and Multi-Party Computation (MPC) are providing promising solutions to the increasingly severe security issues. These technologies not only protect privacy but also enable the possibilities of transaction auditing, attack tracing, and asset recovery.

For blockchain developers and project teams, experts recommend making security the top priority, integrating it into every stage of development. At the same time, seeking comprehensive and impartial third-party audits from professional security organizations is also crucial, as it helps to identify and rectify potential vulnerabilities in a timely manner.

Artificial intelligence plays a dual role in Blockchain security. On one hand, AI technology is used to analyze vulnerabilities and security flaws in smart contracts, improving audit efficiency; on the other hand, attackers may also leverage AI to enhance their attack methods. This means that the threshold for security countermeasures has been raised, and the industry must invest in more robust security solutions.

Formal verification, as a method of proving that computer programs operate as intended through mathematical means, plays an important role in blockchain security. It can complement manual audits to enhance the overall security of smart contracts.

As traditional financial institutions enter the Blockchain space, the types and complexities of security threats are also changing. Malicious actors are expected to shift from attacks on general wallet vulnerabilities to more targeted enterprise-level weaknesses, such as misconfigurations, custom smart contract vulnerabilities, and security flaws in integration interfaces with traditional systems.

In the Web 3.0 era, security is not only a competitive advantage but also a shared responsibility of the entire industry. Through continuous innovation and collaboration, the Blockchain ecosystem is expected to build a more secure and trustworthy digital world in the future.