February Crypto Losses Fall to $49M
Losses from crypto-related exploits declined significantly in February to approximately $49 million, according to a report from security firm Nominis. This figure represents a sharp drop from the $385 million stolen in January. Separate analysis from blockchain security company PeckShield corroborated the trend, estimating February's losses at $26.5 million, the lowest monthly total since March 2025. The data suggests a reduction in the frequency of large-scale protocol breaches during the month.
Hackers Pivot to Social Engineering Attacks
Security analysts report that attackers are moving away from technically complex smart contract exploits and toward exploiting human behavior. Phishing campaigns and malicious wallet approvals, which trick users into signing away control of their funds, have become the primary attack vectors. According to Nominis, these social engineering attacks caused more cumulative damage than traditional hacks in February. The most prevalent method was authorization abuse, where victims unknowingly grant permissions that allow attackers to drain their wallets. This change in strategy primarily targets private individuals rather than large decentralized finance protocols or exchanges.
Solana-Based Step Finance Suffers $30M Breach
The majority of February's losses originated from a single incident involving Step Finance, a portfolio analytics platform built on the Solana blockchain. Attackers drained approximately $30 million from the protocol, highlighting that significant single-point failures remain a threat. While security measures are improving across the industry—with crypto exchange Bybit reporting its systems blocked over $300 million in unauthorized withdrawals in the last quarter—the overall threat remains substantial. According to Chainalysis, crypto hacks resulted in $3.4 billion in total losses last year, underscoring the persistent risk facing investors.
