Crypto hacks hit $357 million in April

April 2025 saw crypto losses surge to $357 million, marking a nearly 1,000% increase from March’s $33 million, driven largely by a $330 million Bitcoin (CRYPTO:BTC) theft in a social engineering attack, according to blockchain security firm PeckShield.

The theft involved an unauthorised transfer of Bitcoin from an elderly individual in the United States, flagged by blockchain investigator ZachXBT on April 28.

Despite the rising losses and the recent $1.4 billion Bybit hack, Hacken CEO Dyma Budorin told Cointelegraph at the Token2049 event in Dubai that the crypto industry’s approach to cybersecurity remains largely unchanged.

“Most of the projects think, ‘Okay, we did pentests. That’s enough. Maybe bug bounty. That’s enough.’ It’s not enough,” Budorin criticised the reliance on limited measures such as bug bounties and penetration tests.

He emphasised the need for layered security strategies similar to those used in traditional industries, including supply-chain security, operational security, and blockchain-specific assessments.

“In big Web2 companies, this is mandatory,” Budorin added.

While the overall cybersecurity posture has not shifted significantly, Budorin acknowledged some improvements in post-hack responses.

He highlighted Chainalysis’s introduction of near real-time blacklisting of stolen funds as a positive development.

Previously, Chainalysis blacklisted stolen funds within three days, allowing hackers time to launder assets through exchanges.

“This is great because, previously, Chainalysis was blacklisting within three days when the funds were moving. And this is obviously nothing because hackers had enough time to launder, through exchanges, the stolen money,” Budorin said.

However, he noted that these improvements do not address deeper structural risks in crypto security.

The Bybit hack on February 21 remains the largest crypto hack to date, with $1.4 billion stolen and laundered within 10 days.

“But in terms of the practice, cybersecurity, nothing changed,” Budorin concluded.