In 2025, total losses from phishing attacks and rug pull projects significantly decreased compared to 2024, yet the risk remains high. At the same time, overall damages from hacks exceeded $3.1 billion, with the largest losses hitting centralized and decentralized exchanges. Beosin analysts emphasize that despite a reduction in some incidents, the overall situation remains extremely tense. Hackers have become more active in exploiting new attack vectors.
Overall Security Situation in Web3
The decline in phishing and rug pull losses is linked to strengthened protective measures within the ecosystem; however, the total damage from hacks remains substantial. The greatest losses again targeted centralized and decentralized exchanges, highlighting risk concentration on major platforms. While incidents involving private key leaks have decreased, this does not alleviate the overall market tension.
- Decrease in phishing and rug pull losses.
- Total hack damages exceeded $3.1 billion.
- Main attack targets: centralized and decentralized exchanges.
Reasons for the Decline in Attacks
Analysts note that the drop in attacks related to private key compromises is due to increased security awareness across the Web3 ecosystem. Project teams have strengthened internal protection processes, and key management has become stricter and more regulated. On-chain monitoring tools and regular smart contract audits are being implemented, reducing the effectiveness of many older attack vectors.
- Increased security focus in the ecosystem and stricter key management procedures.
- Enhanced internal protection processes within project teams.
- Deployment of real-time on-chain monitoring tools.
- Regular smart contract audits and correction of logical errors.
New Attack Vectors
Amid strengthened basic defenses, hackers have shifted focus to alternative vectors: notably, attacks on supply chains and frontend vulnerabilities have increased. Malicious actors more frequently coerce users into transferring funds directly to attacker-controlled addresses, bypassing traditional protocol mechanisms. Payment services, gambling platforms, infrastructure providers, and developer tools have also become targets.
- Attacks on supply chains.
- Frontend vulnerabilities and fraud involving fund transfers.
- Attacks on payment services, gambling platforms, and infrastructure.
- Targeting MEV bots and complex protocol logic.
Threats to Private Users
For private users in 2025, social engineering and phishing have become key threats, with many such incidents remaining outside public statistics due to small loss amounts and lack of reporting. Additionally, cases of physical coercion and kidnappings of crypto asset owners have been recorded, reflecting an escalation of risks beyond the online realm. Actual damage scales may be underestimated due to incomplete accounting of minor incidents.
For more details on schemes and fraud examples, see materials on social engineering and practical advice on how to protect yourself from scammers.
Why This Matters
If you mine from one to a thousand devices and store some funds locally or on exchanges, changes in the attack landscape directly impact your security and operational risks. A decline in private key attacks does not mean threats are absent: new vectors like frontend vulnerabilities and social engineering can lead to fund losses even with proper key storage. Moreover, cases of physical coercion and kidnappings make not only digital but also personal caution essential for owners of significant assets.
What to Do?
For miners with small to medium device fleets, focus on three practical steps: secure key management, careful attention to messages and links, and asset diversification across services. Ensure private keys and seed phrases are stored offline in a secure location with minimal access for unauthorized persons. Regularly check wallet and exchange settings to reduce risks of compromise via frontend or phishing pages.
- Store keys offline and split assets among different services.
- Avoid suspicious links and manually verify website addresses.
- Enable two-factor authentication and use hardware wallets for large amounts.
For more on wallet risks and management methods, see the overview wallet risks, which reveals common vulnerabilities and protection practices.