In the first half of 2025, hackers stole over $2.7 billion. Although this number has significantly decreased in the last few months, the co-founder of Certik, a blockchain security platform, says the war against hackers is endless.
Bad actors are always out to exploit vulnerabilities in blockchain protocols, and despite the ever-evolving security systems in the blockchain industry, hackers keep finding ways. Meanwhile, since all it takes is finding just one bug in the millions of lines of code, they have an unfair advantage.
Moreover, the target is shifting from finding just bugs in code to seeking behavioral human elements. According to a Certik report, out of the over $2.7 billion lost to hacks in the first half of 2025, a large percentage resulted from phishing and wallet compromise.Â
Two Incidents Account for the Majority of the Theft
The attack on Bybit’s cold wallet system and the hack on Cetus Protocol have a combined worth of $1.7 billion. These two incidents account for the majority of the thefts that spiked the losses recorded in 2025.
Hence, the attacks do not indicate a deteriorating or poorly secured security system in the blockchain industry. Without those losses, the losses in 2025 will fall below $700 million, considering over $187 million was recovered.
Security Measures Going Forward
Certik, in its report, mentions the importance of responding to security problems after stating that close to $187 million was recovered. With improved security measures from crypto institutions, hacks can be significantly reduced. Users should also learn ways to protect their wallets against phishing and other scams.
Already, the US has taken steps to ban CBDCs, the EU has launched MiCA regulations, and some other countries, like Hong Kong, have set similar regulatory measures. All these will protect investors from unregulated crypto investments that can result in avoidable losses.
