- The same public ledger that enables transparency in crypto often acts as a double-edged sword for some of its whales, who are identified and targeted by hackers, fraudsters and other criminal elements
- Bloomberg reports a 75% increase in recorded physical attacks (also known as crypto-key attacks) against cryptocurrency holders year-over-year in 2025
- Whales, crypto-related companies and exchanges have responded by upping the ante on security protocols, increasing bodyguards and even using preventative measures
Both cryptocurrency managers and whales are increasingly being targeted by a mix of criminal elements worldwide, even as security continues to be strengthened to protect the not-so-anonymous owners of cryptocurrency.
The transparency introduced to the crypto world puts some coin collectors at risk of physical harm and even kidnapping.
But many are also ostracized by their lavish lifestyles, attendance at crypto conferences or, in some cases, leaked exchange data.
A high-ROI approach to criminals
Unlike most of their targets, criminals generally find crypto executives and enthusiasts to be easy pickings, especially when they flaunt lavish lifestyles or speak volumes at conferences, crypto meetups, or even flash their holdings online.
Given the unrecoverable nature of many of their holdings and the liquidity at their disposal, in addition to the ability to quickly move them across platforms, cryptocurrency-related physical attacks are on the rise, up a meteoric 75% according to a Bloomberg report.
“The logic from the adversarial perspective of what the bad actors see is — this is low risk, high ROI,” said Adam Healy, CEO of Station70, a US-based security firm focused on protecting digital assets, speaking to Bloomberg, pointing out that if the funds are laundered correctly, it’s an easy payday.
Some are even playing the long game, with a much more sophisticated attack on Drift, removing an estimated $280 million from the derivatives exchange, where hackers posed as a trading firm and even met staff at various conferences.
Increased security among other measures
With crypto key attacks becoming more and more mainstream, crypto exchanges have responded by doubling down on the protection of their managers. Crypto exchange Gemini, for example, spent $5 million on security for its co-founders, Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (also known as the Winklevoss twins).
Safety protocols for people in similar situations are being established to provide greater protection. TRM’s Phil Ariss, the director of UK Public Sector Relations, said: “Large, regulated exchanges and custodians are increasingly converging on something that looks very close to big bank practices for a small group of key staff – think management protection for a handful of individuals, secure travel protocols, hardened offices and being internal policies about children’s home addresses not being visible.”
Private crypto holders are also hiring bodyguards, attending physical security-focused conferences, and even looking to invest in decoy wallets and time-delay locks, removing their cold storage wallets from their daily routines altogether.
Even with a recorded increase of 75% year-on-year, the problem may be under-reported, with many quietly paying ransoms, under-reporting losses or simply refusing to involve the authorities in what can often be a crime involving impossible-to-recover securities or additional perceived attention, which can be seen as painting a target on their backs.
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