$2.4B lost in 2025 H1 crypto hacks — exchanges and DeFi hit hardest: report

Key Points

1. The blockchain industry saw approximately $2.37 billion in losses across 121 security incidents in the first half of 2025, a 66% decline in incident numbers compared to previous periods.

2. DeFi was the most targeted sector, accounting for 76.03% of incidents and $470 million in losses, while CEX platforms lost $1.883 billion from just 11 incidents.

3. Scams exploiting AI, such as deepfake videos and phishing attacks using Ethereum's EIP-7702 delegation feature, resulted in significant losses, including a $146,551 phishing attack.

4. Telegram scams tricked users into executing malicious code, leading to full device compromise, while LinkedIn-based phishing and social engineering scams, including a high-profile Coinbase incident, caused over $100 million in losses.

5. Backdoor supply chain attacks via low-cost AI tools and unrestricted large language models (LLMs) like WormGPT and DarkBERT were used to create fake crypto materials and conduct targeted social engineering campaigns.