cryptosecurity

The year 2025 went down in crypto market history as the worst year on record for security incidents. Although the year started relatively quietly, attacks gradually intensified and, more importantly, changed in structure. According to aggregated data from security firm PeckShield, total losses exceeded $4.04 billion, representing a year-over-year increase of 34.2%.
For comparison, estimated losses in 2024 stood at approximately $3.01 billion. While earlier years were dominated by isolated exploits, 2025 was defined by highly targeted and sophisticated attacks against centralized exchanges, smart contracts, and even Web3 development teams themselves.

Hacks and Scams: Two Primary Attack Vectors
Overall losses in 2025 can be divided into two main categories.

Direct hacking incidents accounted for roughly $2.67 billion, marking a 24.2% increase year over year. Even more dramatic was the surge in fraud-related losses, which reached $1.37 billion, a staggering 64.2% increase compared with the previous year.
At the same time, recovery efforts became less effective. While nearly $488.5 million was recovered in 2024 through transaction tracing and token freezes, that figure fell to just $334.9 million in 2025. Attackers clearly became faster, more coordinated, and better at obscuring fund flows.

The Bybit Hack: A Defining Event of 2025
One of the most significant incidents of the year was the hack of the Bybit exchange, which alone resulted in losses exceeding $1.4 billion, largely in Ethereum. This single event heavily influenced annual statistics and became emblematic of a broader reality: even major centralized platforms are not immune to advanced attacks.

North Korea and Its Dominance in Web3 Exploits
According to data from Hacken, North Korean hacking groups were responsible for as much as 52% of total gains from Web3-related attacks in 2025. The second half of the year proved especially dangerous, with a sharp acceleration in attacks on DeFi protocols, particularly newly launched decentralized exchanges (DEXs).
In contrast, bridge exploits were less frequent than in previous years, as cross-chain bridges became less central to ecosystem activity. Instead, attackers relied on more mature laundering and swapping infrastructures. Tornado Cash remained a preferred tool for Ethereum-based funds, while advanced DEX routing enabled rapid conversion and dispersion of stolen assets.

Smart Contract Vulnerabilities and Cloned Protocol Risks
Vulnerabilities in smart contracts accounted for approximately 12.8% of all exploits. Attacks were not limited to large protocols—smaller vaults and contracts were frequently targeted whenever a known and relatively simple flaw was identified.
Risk was further amplified by the widespread use of cloned smart contracts across Web3 projects. Once a vulnerability was discovered in one implementation, attackers were able to replicate the exploit across multiple platforms in rapid succession.

Attacks Shift From Infrastructure to People
One of the most important trends of 2025 was a decisive shift away from mass phishing campaigns toward highly targeted attacks on individuals. Hackers increasingly focused on Web3 development teams, which often control multisignature wallets, high-value vaults, and administrative permissions for smart contracts.
A particularly effective new vector involved fake job recruitment campaigns. Attackers posed as legitimate projects, posted developer job listings, and distributed malware during the hiring process. The malware was often disguised as a meeting link or technical document and, once executed, gained access to private keys stored on the compromised system.

Multisignature Wallets Emerge as a Critical Weak Point
Access control failures became one of the most serious systemic weaknesses. As much as 53% of all hacks were linked to direct access to multisignature wallets. The remaining losses resulted from a combination of user error and smart contract flaws, particularly unauthorized minting, withdrawals, or manipulation of DeFi tokens.
This pattern continued into 2026. The first major hack of the new year, involving the TrueBit protocol, followed a similar model, allowing an attacker to mint and withdraw unauthorized tokens and steal up to $26 million.

Conclusion: 2025 as a Warning for the Entire Crypto Sector
The events of 2025 made it clear that crypto security is no longer just about code—it is fundamentally about people, processes, and access management. Attackers adapted faster than defensive systems and moved decisively toward the weakest points in the ecosystem: key individuals and operational control layers.

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