The crypto industry is kicking off 2025 with a stark reminder that it’s still a hacker’s playground. 

According to a January 30, 2025 report by cybersecurity platform Immunefi, cryptocurrency hacks for January alone amounted to a staggering $74 million in losses. A single centralized finance (CeFi) platform—Phemex—accounted for $69.1 million of that sum. 

As such, CeFi platforms bore the brunt of the damage, making up 93% of the month’s total losses, even though these custodial services are supposed to be the “safe” option for investors. 

Meanwhile, 19 incidents targeted decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, signaling they aren’t off the hook either.

The honor of the most frequently attacked blockchain belongs to Binance’s BNB Chain, which saw 50% of January’s on-chain losses. Close on its heels was Ethereum, responsible for 25% of the total. 

This adds yet another chapter to the ongoing narrative of blockchain vulnerabilities, centralized platform failures, and the billion-dollar question: what will we learn?

January’s hack frenzy didn’t happen in a vacuum; it’s part of a broader trend of increasingly targeted attacks. The infamous Phemex hack, which saw $69.1 million evaporate overnight, was orchestrated by exploiting access keys held by the platform. Contrast this with rising vulnerabilities in DeFi, where hacks tend to exploit faulty smart contract logic rather than centralized custodial practices.  

DeFi saw fewer outright losses in January 2025 but remains vulnerable. January’s exploits exposed loopholes in high-profile projects, suggesting that while users may flee CeFi for ideological or security reasons, decentralization doesn’t guarantee immunity.  

And let’s address the elephant in the room: wallets. 

While hardware wallets provide an excellent air gap, the average user often exchanges functionality for security by relying on hot wallets or exchange-based custody. 

That’s how even tech-savvy users become victims of phishing schemes and social engineering attacks.  

A practical fix is to use hardware wallets for long-term holdings, conduct regular checks on smart contract audit histories, and don’t store passwords where a hacker could guess them. 

Keep your funds diversified. Using a mix of hardware wallets, multi-sig solutions, and trusted DeFi protocols reduces the chances of a single point of failure wiping you out.  

Stay current on audits. Even the shiniest DeFi projects need regular scrutiny. If a protocol hasn’t been audited recently, think twice about locking up significant funds there.  

But let’s dig deeper into *why* this happens. CeFi platforms remain ripe for exploitation because they essentially mirror the cybersecurity flaws of Web2 technology while trying to dabble in Web3. This mishmash allows hackers to utilize well-established attack vectors—phishing, social engineering, or exploiting vulnerabilities in centralized architecture. And because these platforms store funds en masse, the rewards are worth the risks for attackers.

Moreover, the recent compliance push hasn’t helped. Stricter KYC/AML regulations force CeFi platforms to expand their operational surface: adding layers of identity verification, even more user data, and centralized databases—all of which create extra doors for hackers to kick down.

The second troubling statistic from January’s report is the fact that BNB and Ethereum remain at the epicenter of crypto exploit incidents. Both chains have become magnets for attacks, together accounting for 75% of the month’s blockchain-related losses.

So, why are these titans of the blockchain space still vulnerable? For starters, popularity can be a curse. BNB Chain and Ethereum host thousands of projects, creating sprawling digital ecosystems that are exponentially more complex than smaller blockchains. 

This complexity introduces an endless stream of bugs and vulnerabilities at both the smart contract and protocol levels. 

Hackers don’t need to break into the entire chain—they just need one poorly written contract to exploit a dApp. 

Both networks have doubled down on security initiatives; Ethereum introduced account abstraction while BNB Chain recently implemented the BEP-171, a hard fork designed to enhance chain security.   

Immunefi reported 19 security incidents in DeFi space, including notable protocol exploits pointing to lingering vulnerabilities in nascent projects. While DeFi accounted for only 6.5% of total losses, this smaller figure is misleading, it only means DeFi flies under the radar until a catastrophic exploit occurs

In DeFi, much of the issue boils down to a relentless focus on speed over security. Developers often prioritize launching products quickly to make it in an endless race for funding, liquidity, and investor attention. 

This rush creates an inevitable backlog of vulnerabilities that are exploited post-launch. 

The $74 million lost in crypto hacks this January serves as a sobering reminder that “trust” in crypto is still fragile, whether you’re in CeFi or DeFi. 

Hence the need for a trustless system.

Sure, it’s a smaller number than last year’s disaster-filled January ($133M lost back then). But does that really reflect progress? We’ll see in the coming months. 

For users, this pattern is an urgent wake-up call. Here’s what you can do to protect yourself in 2025 and beyond:

Where does this trend go from here? If the crypto world learns anything, 2025 could become the year of genuine security innovation. Beyond slapping band-aids on hacked infrastructure, blockchain projects, audit firms, and cybersecurity teams must up their game. That means proactive defense, not reactive patchwork.

The post Crypto Hacks 2025: How $74 Million Vanished in January Alone   appeared first on CoinCentral.

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