Crypto-related hacks fell sharply in February, but attackers are increasingly targeting users through phishing campaigns and malicious wallet authorizations. This shift suggests that attackers are focusing more on exploiting human behavior than vulnerabilities in smart contracts.
According to Nominis’ monthly report, approximately $49 million was lost to cryptocurrency-related exploits in February.
One breach involving Step Finance, a portfolio dashboard and analytics platform built on the Solana blockchain, accounted for the majority of the losses, draining the attackers of approximately $30 million.
February’s numbers were a significant drop from January’s $385 million theft. Although the one-month data does not necessarily indicate a sustained trend, this decline suggests that large-scale protocol abuse was less prevalent during that period.
Nominis said social engineering attacks are causing more cumulative damage than traditional smart contract exploits, and phishing campaigns have spiked over the past month. These attacks typically trick users into interacting with malicious links or signing fraudulent transactions.
The most common victims were individuals rather than centralized exchanges or decentralized financial protocols.
The most prevalent attack method was authentication fraud, where the victim unknowingly granted wallet permissions, allowing the attacker to move funds from their account.
This figure is broadly in line with another report from blockchain security firm Peckshield, which estimates that total cryptocurrency exploits in February were $26.5 million, the lowest monthly loss since March 2025. PecShield attributes this decline in part to enhanced risk management and improved security practices across the industry.
Related: South Korea sells $21.5 million in Bitcoin recovered after custody breach
Encryption security has improved, but serious exploits still exist
Hacking and fraud have persisted since the cryptocurrency industry’s early days, but exchanges and security firms say their defenses are gradually improving.
Cryptocurrency exchange Bybit recently reported that its anti-fraud systems prevented more than $300 million in fraudulent withdrawals in the final quarter of last year. The company said it flagged approximately 350 high-risk fraudulent addresses and prevented approximately 8,000 users from falling victim to potential fraud.
Despite improvements in detection systems, large-scale attacks remain a major risk to the industry. According to Chainalysis, cumulative losses from cryptocurrency hacks last year amounted to $3.4 billion, underscoring the scale of the threat.
Related: Google discovers iOS exploit kit used in cryptocurrency phishing attacks
