$ETH According to Cointelegraph, pig butchering scams have emerged as a significant threat to cryptocurrency investors, resulting in billions of dollars in losses across 200,000 identified cases in 2024. This type of phishing scheme involves intricate manipulation tactics to deceive investors into transferring their assets to fraudulent crypto addresses. The Ethereum network alone saw over $5.5 billion lost to these scams last year.

Among the most affected platforms, Cyvers identified three of the five largest centralized exchanges, a crypto-friendly bank, and an institutional trading platform. The industry is still reeling from 2024, when crypto hackers stole over $2.3 billion worth of digital assets across 165 incidents, marking a 40% increase from 2023's $1.69 billion in losses. Michael Pearl, vice president of GTM strategy at Cyvers, emphasized that pig butchering schemes pose the biggest threat, even compared to crypto hacks. He noted the difficulty in distinguishing these scams from other investment scams, as they often involve elements of Ponzi schemes and romance scams. The grooming aspect is what defines a pig butchering scheme.

Victims of pig butchering scams are typically groomed throughout one to two weeks in 35% of cases, with 10% experiencing grooming periods of up to three months. Alarmingly, 75% of victims lost over half of their net worth, with males aged 30 to 49 being the most affected. The rise of generative artificial intelligence and AI-based social media chatbots has further enabled scammers to scale their attacks. The impact of these schemes extends beyond retail investors, affecting crypto platforms, especially centralized exchanges, which are losing millions and facing reputational crises, banking relationship challenges, and increased regulatory scrutiny. Efforts to combat this phenomenon include industry-led initiatives and government-driven regulatory actions.

December 2024 was the peak month for pig butchering schemes, with losses exceeding $468 million, surpassing November's $424 million. The ongoing threat of these scams highlights