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Crypto Security Audits Fail to Prevent $3.63 Billion in Cyber Heists
Technology Services · Internet Software/Services · cnbc · 2026-09-08
A new CoinGecko report reveals that over $3.63 billion was stolen from crypto platforms between 2025 and 2026, despite most firms undergoing security audits.
What Happened
Scale of Crypto Theft: Cryptocurrency platforms suffered losses exceeding $3.63 billion due to cyberattacks and compromised passkeys between January 2025 and July 2026. This significant financial impact highlights the persistent vulnerability of digital asset infrastructure to sophisticated hacking attempts.
Ineffectiveness of Audits: CoinGecko’s analysis indicates that 88% of stolen funds and 60% of impacted platforms had previously completed independent security audits. The report suggests that these audits often fail to address the specific vectors or operational areas frequently targeted by modern threat actors.
Major Platform Breaches: Bybit emerged as the most severely affected entity, suffering a $1.4 billion heist in February 2025 that has been linked to North Korean actors. Other notable victims included KelpDao and Drift Protocol, which reported losses of $292 million and $285 million, respectively.
Industry Security Challenges: The findings underscore a critical gap in the current security landscape for decentralized finance and exchange platforms. As attackers evolve their methods, the industry faces mounting pressure to move beyond standard compliance checks toward more comprehensive, ongoing security monitoring.