|

Crypto Hacks Jump 15% in August with $163M Lost Across 16 Major Exploits

Crypto Hacks Jump 15% in August with $163M Lost Across 16 Major Exploits

Crypto hacks surged 15% in August with $163 million stolen throughout 16 main exploits, in keeping with PeckShield data.

The losses exceeded July’s $142 million total as hackers focused exchanges, DeFi protocols, and particular person holders by way of more and more refined social engineering assaults and technical vulnerabilities.

August Becomes Third-Worst Month for Crypto Security in 2025

A single Bitcoin holder misplaced $91.4 million on August 19 by way of social engineering after attackers posed as help brokers for a {hardware} pockets to acquire pockets credentials.

Crypto Hacks Jump 15% in August with $163M Lost Across 16 Major Exploits
Source: ZachXBT

The sufferer transferred 783 BTC to criminals who instantly laundered funds by way of Wasabi Wallet, a privateness software generally used to obscure transaction trails.

Turkish trade BtcTurk also suffered its second major breach in 14 months, shedding $54 million in a coordinated multi-chain assault focusing on scorching wallets throughout Ethereum, Avalanche, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Mantle, and Polygon networks.

The trade’s whole losses now exceed $100 million following a earlier $54 million hack in June 2024.

The month’s different main incidents included ODIN•FUN shedding $7 million, BetterBank.io going through $5 million in losses, and CrediX Finance struggling a $4.5 million exploit earlier than its improvement staff vanished fully.

The CrediX incident developed into an obvious exit rip-off after hackers initially agreed to return funds however in the end despatched belongings to Tornado Cash mixing service as a substitute.

Notably, bodily violence in opposition to crypto holders was minimal this month, with solely a former dealer kidnapped in Paris for a €10,000 ransom earlier than being launched with facial accidents.

Social Engineering and Exchange Vulnerabilities Drive Major Losses

The $91.4 million Bitcoin holder assault occurred precisely one yr after the $243 million Genesis creditor theft.

Blockchain investigator ZachXBT uncovered the scheme two days after the August 19 incident, revealing how the attacker had systematically gained the sufferer’s belief earlier than requesting delicate pockets info.

For the BtcTurk’s assault, the multi-chain exploit started with suspicious transfers detected by Cyvers’ safety agency roughly half-hour after preliminary unauthorized entry.

Attackers consolidated stolen belongings into two main wallets earlier than systematically swapping varied cryptocurrencies for Ethereum by way of decentralized exchanges.

The Turkish trade instantly suspended all cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals whereas sustaining fiat forex operations.

BtcTurk initially prevented utilizing phrases like “hack” or “breach,” as a substitute describing the scenario as technical difficulties that required momentary safety measures.

However, in the case of the CrediX Finance incident, it turned out to be an exit rip-off tactic disguised as restoration negotiations.

After shedding $4.5 million by way of a multisig pockets compromise on August 4, the protocol initially assured customers that successful negotiations with exploiters for the return of funds could be accomplished inside two days.

However, the development team vanished on August 8, deleting all official accounts and leaving customers with out recourse.

Physical Violence Targets French Crypto Community Through Systematic Kidnapping

The August 28 kidnapping of a 35-year-old former crypto trader in Paris marked the tenth crypto-linked abduction reported in France throughout latest months.

Kidnappers demanded €10,000 ransom from the sufferer’s Algerian contact earlier than releasing him on Wednesday morning with facial swelling and strangulation accidents.

French authorities have recognized coordinated legal networks systematically focusing on crypto entrepreneurs by way of more and more brutal ways.

France now accounts for practically one-third of the 32 world “wrench assaults” reported in 2025, with the nation now seen as a harmful place for crypto entrepreneurs.

In May, prosecutors charged 25 suspects linked to a number of abduction plots, together with makes an attempt on Paymium CEO Pierre Noizat’s daughter, utilizing pretend supply vans as cowl.

Moroccan authorities arrested Franco-Moroccan suspect Badiss Mohamed Amide Bajjou in Tangier following an Interpol Red Notice, figuring out him as a key organizer coordinating operations from exterior France.

Investigators consider a second Franco-Moroccan organizer stays at giant, utilizing social media to recruit younger French nationals.

The violence extends globally, with Belgium sentencing three men to 12 years for kidnapping crypto investor Stephane Winkel’s spouse in December 2024.

The August incidents contribute to 2025’s devastating safety development, with crypto investors losing over $3.1 billion in the yr’s first half by way of digital assaults and bodily violence.

The submit Crypto Hacks Jump 15% in August with $163M Lost Across 16 Major Exploits appeared first on Cryptonews.

Similar Posts