In the first half of 2025, crypto thefts soared to a staggering $2.1 billion, marking a record high for illicit activities in the sector. This increase is largely attributed to infrastructure attacks and state-sponsored actors, notably from North Korea. TRM Labs reported nearly 75 hacks and exploits during this period, representing a 10% rise from the previous record of $2 billion stolen in the first half of 2022. Over 80% of the stolen funds were due to infrastructure attacks, which involve tactics like stealing private keys and compromising platforms. Protocol exploits accounted for 12% of losses, with hackers leveraging vulnerabilities in blockchain protocols. The Bybit hack in February, attributed to the North Korean Lazarus Group, alone resulted in $1.5 billion in losses, significantly impacting the average hack size. TRM Labs recommends a multi-layered defense strategy, including regular security audits and enhanced insider threat detection, to combat these growing threats and emphasizes the need for global collaboration to track and prosecute cybercriminals. Read more AI-generated news on: https://app.chaingpt.org/news