Capital Already in Transit

Social engineering scams have emerged as one of the most destructive attack vectors in the cryptocurrency space, easily bypassing technical defenses and draining users and platforms of substantial amounts.

Recently, a victim lost 783 Bitcoin, valued at around $91 million, due to such an attack.

Hackers Posing as Wallet Support

Notable on-chain investigator ZachXBT reported that the attackers masqueraded as customer support from both exchanges and hardware wallets. According to blockchain data, the thief has already laundered the stolen assets using the privacy-focused Bitcoin wallet, Wasabi.

This incident coincidentally fell on the one-year anniversary of the $243 million Genesis Creditor theft.

ZachXBT explained that widespread breaches have exposed vast amounts of personal data online, making it easier for threat actors to target victims. By using these data leaks, attackers can convincingly impersonate support teams, gain trust, and execute such scams.

When a community member inquired about how to avoid being a victim of social engineering, ZachXBT advised a straightforward and practical approach: assume every call or email could be a scam.

Social Engineering: A Prevalent Attack Strategy

TRM Labs recently emphasized the increasing prevalence of social engineering in crypto thefts. The firm reported that the first half of 2025 saw a record $2.1 billion stolen through hacks and exploits. Over 80% of the losses were linked to infrastructure breaches, including compromised private keys and seed phrases, often facilitated by social engineering tactics or insider threats.

The average size of hacks also doubled compared to 2024, reaching $30 million during the same period. TRM noted that the Bybit incident in February, attributed to North Korean state-sponsored actors, was the largest crypto hack ever, accounting for nearly 70% of total losses. In addition to this significant theft, numerous other attacks took place in January, April, and May, several of which surpassed $100 million each.