Crypto Hacks and Scams Plunge to Their Lowest Point Since March 2025 – PeckShield Report
February 2026 saw a dramatic contraction in the value stolen from cryptocurrency protocols and users, according to security firm PeckShield. The data points to a market that is both cooling off after a volatile period and benefitting from evolving security practices.
Monthly loss figures
- Total loss: $26.5 million – the smallest amount reported for a month since March 2025.
- Incidents: 15 separate hacks or scams were recorded in February.
- Month‑on‑month change: ‑69.2 % compared with January’s $86 million in losses.
Only two of the fifteen events accounted for the bulk of the thefts.
| Incident | Approx. loss | Method |
|---|---|---|
| YieldBlox DAO‑managed lending pool | $10 million | Manipulation of token price on 21 Feb |
| IoTeX decentralized identity protocol | $8.9 million | Private‑key compromise on 21 Feb |
All other reported exploits together resulted in less than $8 million of additional losses.
Why the dip?
A PeckShield spokesperson attributed the decline to a combination of market dynamics and security improvements.
- Reduced “mega‑hacks.” The sector has not seen the kind of extreme breaches that inflated previous months’ totals, such as the $1.5 billion Bybit exploit that took place in February 2025.
- Volatility‑driven shift in attacker focus. A sharp correction in early February, highlighted by Bitcoin briefly slipping below the $70,000 threshold, pushed many malicious actors away from targeting protocol vulnerabilities and toward exploiting market‑liquidity events and institutional deleveraging.
- Maturing risk controls. Industry analysts, including Dominick John of Kronos Research, noted tighter counter‑party vetting, enhanced real‑time monitoring on major platforms, and a growing emphasis on formal security audits as factors that are likely curbing the frequency of large‑scale exploits.
John added that the trend could continue if the “security standards keep pace with rapid innovation.” He also highlighted the rising role of artificial‑intelligence tools—automated code reviews, anomaly‑detection engines, and pre‑deployment attack simulations—that are catching flaws earlier in the development lifecycle.
Phishing remains a stubborn threat
While overall hacking losses fell, phishing attacks that target users directly have not been eradicated.
- Wallet‑drainer scams: The broader category of phishing‑related thefts dropped sharply in 2025, from roughly $494 million to $83.85 million, yet the technique—impersonating trusted entities to harvest private keys—continues to generate losses.
- Industry advice: PeckShield reiterated the importance of multi‑signature cold‑storage solutions and disciplined key‑management practices, especially for high‑net‑worth holders and institutional participants.
Key takeaways
- February’s $26.5 M loss marks a significant cooling of hack‑related thefts, the smallest figure in over a year.
- Two major incidents on 21 Feb accounted for roughly 70 % of the month’s total loss.
- Market turbulence, not just technical safeguards, appears to influence attacker behavior, shifting focus from protocol exploits to liquidity‑driven strategies.
- Improved risk management, stricter counter‑party standards, and AI‑driven security tooling are cited as contributors to the downward trend.
- Phishing attacks, though decreasing in overall dollar value, remain the most persistent vector and require continued user education and robust wallet security.
If the current trajectory holds, the crypto ecosystem could see further declines in theft volumes, provided that security investments keep pace with the evolving threat landscape. Stakeholders are urged to adopt layered defenses—formal audits, real‑time monitoring, and strong custodial practices—to sustain the gains observed this month.
Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/crypto-hack-losses-february-2026-peckshield-lowest-since-march-2025?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound
