Just two months into 2025, the cryptocurrency landscape is looking increasingly treacherous. Blockchain security firm, Immunefi has revealed in its latest report that losses from hacks this year are nearing the total amount of last year’s losses, which amounted to a staggering $2.2 billion. The recent Bybit exploit, the largest in crypto history, has pushed this year’s losses to a jaw-dropping $1.6 billion.
It was in February 2025 that losses from hacks reached a peak, with a total loss of $1.53 billion. To put this into perspective, the losses in February represent an eighteen-fold increase from February 2024 and a twenty-fold surge month-on-month. This alarming trend has been noted by Immunefi, who tweeted, “Losses skyrocketed in February 2025, reaching a staggering total of $1.53B from hacks alone. We can’t stop repeating “increase” this time, so here it goes: this marks an 18x increase from February 2024 and a 20x surge MoM.”
Last Friday, hackers managed to steal over $1.4 billion worth of Ethereum and Ethereum-related assets in a highly sophisticated operation. The federal authorities have now linked this attack to the infamous Lazarus Group, a North Korea state-sponsored hacking entity.
“In 2025, the crypto ecosystem has experienced a total loss of $1,602,258,100, which is an eight-fold increase from the $200 million lost during the same period last year,” highlighted Immunefi. The firm also noted that February’s losses were twenty times more than they were in January, when hackers managed to get away with a relatively small $73.9 million.
The recent Bybit exploit is a glaring example of the growing threat. The Lazarus Group targeted the centralized exchange and took control of an Ethereum cold wallet in the midst of a routine transfer operation. The stolen funds were then laundered through decentralized exchanges and obfuscating apps, a modus operandi consistent with previous Lazarus Group operations, in a bid to cover their tracks and swap the stolen Ethereum for Bitcoin.
The growing trend of attacks on centralized platforms, previously considered safe, is a cause for concern. These platforms, unlike apps and decentralized exchanges (DEXs), are run by companies and are less prone to bugs and hacks. However, the security of these platforms has been severely compromised in recent times, as illustrated by the case of the Japanese crypto exchange DMM Bitcoin, which lost over 4,500 Bitcoins, worth $308 million, to hackers in May last year.
So far, 2025 has already witnessed two massive exploits on centralized platforms: Bybit and Crypto neo-bank Infini, which lost nearly $50 million on Monday. These two events alone account for the majority of losses in this year, underscoring the escalating risk in the crypto landscape.
In conclusion, the rising tide of crypto hacks is a stark reminder of the inherent risks in the world of digital currency. As the year progresses, the crypto community must strive to bolster security measures and remain vigilant in the face of these growing threats.
