Bitcoin News Today: Hackers Targeting Crypto's New Highs with Precision Scams

Crypto thefts in August 2025 totaled $163 million across 16 major incidents, marking a 15% increase from July and reflecting a strategic shift by hackers toward high-value targets and increasingly sophisticated social engineering tactics, according to blockchain security firm PeckShield [1]. This rise coincided with record-breaking crypto prices, as Bitcoin and Ether reached new highs during the month, creating a surge in incentives for attackers to exploit vulnerabilities in centralized exchanges and individual wallets [4].

One of the most significant incidents involved a single Bitcoin holder who lost $91.4 million through a social engineering attack. The attacker impersonated a hardware wallet support agent and convinced the victim to share wallet credentials, enabling the transfer of 783 BTC, which was quickly laundered via Wasabi Wallet, a privacy tool designed to obscure transaction trails [3]. This attack occurred just one year after the $243 million Genesis creditor theft, underscoring the persistent threat posed by targeted social engineering campaigns [3].

Another major breach targeted the Turkish exchange BtcTurk, which lost $54 million in a multi-chain attack affecting hot wallets across Ethereum, Avalanche, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Mantle, and Polygon networks. This marked BtcTurk’s second significant security incident in the past 14 months, pushing its total losses past $100 million. The attackers consolidated stolen assets into two primary wallets before swapping various cryptocurrencies for Ethereum through decentralized exchanges. BtcTurk responded by halting all cryptocurrency deposits and withdrawals, though fiat currency operations continued [3].

The broader landscape of crypto exploits also saw smaller but notable incidents, with ODIN•FUN, BetterBank.io, and CrediX Finance suffering losses of $7 million, $5 million, and $4.5 million, respectively. The CrediX case took a particularly troubling turn as hackers initially agreed to return funds but later sent the assets to the Tornado Cash mixing service, signaling an apparent exit scam [3]. Physical threats, though less common, were also reported, with a former trader kidnapped in Paris for a €10,000 ransom before being released with facial injuries [3].

Experts attribute the increased losses in August to both the rising value of crypto assets and a strategic shift in attacker behavior. According to Hank Huang, CEO of Kronos Research, the value of crypto exploits often rises in tandem with asset prices, creating greater rewards for those willing to exploit vulnerabilities [4]. While the overall number of attacks has declined over the past eight months, indicating some progress in ecosystem security, Huang warns that losses could still rise in the coming months, especially as security technology improvements lag behind the sophistication of attacks [4].

Looking ahead, Huang speculates that emerging technologies, particularly AI-driven security solutions, could help mitigate the damage from such attacks in the long term. PeckShield emphasized the importance of robust security measures for high-value targets, urging corporations and individuals with large crypto holdings to adopt proactive defense strategies [4].

Source:

[1] title1 (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/crypto-hacks-jump-15-august-083019022.html)

[2] title2 (https://www.pcrisk.com/removal-guides/33766-eth-airdrop-portal-scam)

[4] title4 (https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-hacks-august-2025-bitcoiner-btcturk-losses)