Cryptocurrency Market Experiences Hack Losses Totaling $3.1 Billion in First Quarter of 2025, According to Hacken Analysis
In the first half of 2025, the cryptocurrency industry has been grappling with a surge in AI-related attacks and insecure APIs, leading to losses exceeding $3.1 billion.
The rise in AI-powered hacks has been alarming, with attacks leveraging AI techniques surging by over 1,000% compared to 2023. These AI-driven exploits have become a leading cause of breaches, often combined with phishing and social engineering to bypass human and technical safeguards.
Nearly 99% of AI-related attacks exploited insecure APIs. These APIs, often poorly secured, became gateways for attackers to interact with blockchain platforms, manipulate smart contracts, or steal credentials. Such vulnerabilities allowed unauthorized access to critical system functions and user assets.
Access-control vulnerabilities remain the most significant weakness, responsible for 59% of total losses. Attackers exploited weak permission settings and legacy smart contracts with exposed administrative functions. Many protocols still run outdated or deprecated contract versions, exposing them to AI-enhanced systematic probing and manipulation.
The Bybit hack, where North Korean attackers exploited a wallet signer vulnerability to steal $1.46 billion, is a prime example of the impact of these attacks. Manipulated price oracles and insider fraud incidents illustrate how AI tools facilitate precise and sophisticated attacks on decentralized finance (DeFi) infrastructure. Phishing scams using AI-generated impersonations led to losses of nearly $600 million.
The fragmentation of Web3 security practices and reliance on legacy codebases with insufficient defensive measures, along with human errors, have amplified the problem.
Experts recommend combining blockchain-native standards with robust off-chain protections, better API security, and comprehensive user training to mitigate AI-powered and access-control threats.
Unfortunately, the cryptocurrency industry has suffered another blow with the news of CoinDCX, a crypto exchange, falling victim to a $44 million hack. The exact nature of the attack is yet to be determined, but it underscores the urgent need for improved security measures in the industry.
The escalating use of AI in attacks has resulted in a significant increase in breaches, with over 1,000% surge compared to 2023. These AI-driven exploits often exploit insecure APIs, with nearly 99% of AI-related attacks doing so, serving as gateways for attackers to interact with blockchain platforms and manipulate smart contracts.
In response to these threats, experts advocate for the integration of blockchain-native standards, robust off-chain protections, improved API security, and comprehensive user training to combat AI-powered and access-control threats effectively.
