According to the agency, miscreants are taking advantage of the increased interest in cryptocurrency and the complex functionality and the open source nature of DeFi platforms to perform nefarious activities.

Cybercriminals are exploiting security flaws in the smart contracts governing DeFi platforms to steal virtual currency and cause investors to lose money, the FBI says.

Smart contracts, which are defined as self-executing contracts containing within their lines of code the terms of the agreement between a buyer and a seller, are present everywhere across the decentralized blockchain network.