According to TRM Labs, the first half of 2025 saw Crypto thefts reach $2.1 billion, which was more than the record set in 2022 and equal to the total losses in 2024. Assaults on infrastructure that stole private keys and seed phrases caused more than 80% of these losses. 

There were 75 of these assaults, each costing an average of $30 million, which is twice the $15 million average in early 2024. The size of these attacks shows how advanced hackers are becoming, often with help from the government.

North Korea’s $1.5 billion Bybit exchange breach in February was the biggest occurrence in the world of crypto theft in 2025. It caused about 70% of all damages. TRM Labs says that North Korean actors are responsible for $1.6 billion in thefts in the first half of 2025. They use Bitcoin crime for political purposes.

Another big attack, which may have been linked to Israel, took $100 million from Iran’s Nobitex exchange. These activities, which are backed by the government, take advantage of weaknesses in centralized exchanges by leveraging advanced social engineering and DNS hijacks to get to private keys.

Over 80% of losses are still caused by attacks that steal private keys and seed phrases. Scammers use fake communications and phishing websites to trick people into giving them private information. 

Private key assaults are 10 times more successful than protocol exploits because they involve social engineering. Protocol exploits produced 12% of losses using methods like flash loans. These methods use trust to control victims, which makes them a constant threat.

Front-end attacks, like DNS hijacks and broken user interfaces, have become a major weak spot. Attackers take advantage of these weaknesses to send users to harmful sites or steal their login information, making the effects of private key leaks much worse. Centralized exchanges are becoming popular targets since they have a lot of assets and are easy to attack from both the front end and the infrastructure.

Users must put security first to fight these hazards. Using hardware wallets, turning on two-factor authentication (2FA), and checking that a website is real before making a purchase are all very important procedures. Keeping your wallet’s firmware up to date and not responding to unwanted requests for seed phrases or private keys will help you avoid losing money. 

Using reliable platforms like KoinX to manage your portfolio and spreading out your crypto holdings are two more ways to lower your risk. In the ever-changing world of crypto, it’s important to stay alert and put security first.

The rise in thefts in 2025 shows how important it is to have strong security. The industry needs to come up with new ideas as hackers become more strategic, using AI-driven phishing and taking advantage of centralized systems. Seedless wallets like BC Vault and better 2FA protocols are good alternatives to classic seed phrase systems, which are still a big risk.