Bitcoin News Today: "Stolen $91M Bitcoin Vanishes into Privacy Laundering Maze"

A high-profile social engineering attack has resulted in the theft of $91.4 million worth of Bitcoin, with the stolen funds reportedly funneled through the privacy-focused Wasabi Wallet. The incident, uncovered by blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, involved an attacker impersonating a support agent for a hardware wallet provider, deceiving the victim into disclosing sensitive wallet credentials. The attack took place on August 19, 2025, and the stolen amount—equivalent to 783 BTC—was quickly moved through a laundering process involving multiple deposits into Wasabi Wallet, a tool designed to obscure transaction trails [1].

This theft occurred exactly one year after the $243 million Genesis creditor theft, a major event that highlighted vulnerabilities in crypto infrastructure and led to the arrest of 12 individuals in California in May 2024 [1]. The timing underscores the persistent and evolving nature of cyber threats in the cryptocurrency space. The incident adds to a grim trend for 2025, in which crypto investors have already lost $3.1 billion in the first half of the year due to hacking and scamming activities [1].

ZachXBT has noted that the attacker used a clean Bitcoin wallet address—bc1qyxyk—to receive the funds before initiating the laundering process. The use of Wasabi Wallet reflects a common tactic in the cryptocurrency ecosystem to obscure the origin and destination of illicit funds. These privacy tools make it significantly harder for investigators to trace transactions back to the perpetrators, exacerbating the challenges in recovering stolen assets [2].

Social engineering attacks have become increasingly sophisticated and widespread in the crypto industry, targeting both seasoned investors and less experienced users. Scammers often impersonate trusted entities such as hardware wallet providers and crypto exchanges, using tactics like fake security alerts or support calls to extract sensitive information. In April 2025, for example, scammers impersonating Ledger and Trezor sent fraudulent communications to users, falsely claiming that a “critical security update” was required [2].

While no specific group was identified in this case, ZachXBT ruled out the involvement of the North Korean state-backed Lazarus Group, a notorious actor in previous high-profile crypto thefts. The incident, however, highlights a broader industry issue: the need for stronger user education and more robust verification processes. According to ZachXBT, users should operate under the assumption that any unexpected communication—whether via call or email—is likely a scam [2].

The attack adds to a growing list of incidents that underscore the multibillion-dollar problem of crypto-related theft. In the first five months of 2025 alone, over $2.1 billion was stolen through wallet compromises, phishing attacks, and similar methods, according to CertiK, a blockchain security firm. The most significant breach during that period was the $1.4 billion exploit of crypto exchange Bybit in February, demonstrating that even large, well-audited platforms remain vulnerable [2].

Source:

[1] Victim Loses $91M in Bitcoin in Social Engineering Scam (https://finance.yahoo.com/news/victim-loses-91m-bitcoin-social-181358791.html)

[2] Bitcoiner Loses $91M in Social Engineering Attack: ZachXBT (https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoiner-loses-91m-social-engineering-attack-zachxbt)