The crypto industry set an anti-record for the number of hacks: 83 incidents in a quarter
The second quarter of 2026 set a record for the number of attacks on crypto protocols: analysts recorded 83 hacks. This is an absolute all-time high. The total damage amounted to $755.3 million, which, however, is significantly lower than previous peaks in terms of loss volume.
Key Incidents: KelpDAO and Drift Protocol
The largest attacks of the quarter were the hack of KelpDAO for $293 million and the exploit of Drift Protocol for $280 million. In the cross-chain bridge segment, damage reached $351 million, with 38% of this amount attributed to the incident involving the LayerZero OFT bridge, which was linked to the KelpDAO attack. Another 37% of losses were caused by compromised administrative access and token price manipulation. Private key theft accounted for only 5.66% of the total volume.
Despite the record number of hacks, this quarter was not the most expensive in terms of loss volume. The record is still held by the fourth quarter of 2020 — $3.56 billion. This indicates a shift in the nature of threats: instead of isolated giant exploits, we are seeing a steady stream of smaller attacks.
Reasons for the Increase in Incidents
The trend is explained by a decline in overall liquidity within the ecosystem. Total Value Locked (TVL) decreased from $164 billion to approximately $73 billion, making large targets less attractive. However, the gap between the pace of protocol development and the maturity of their risk management systems remains critical. For example, some projects use a "three out of six" multi-signature scheme but store three keys on a single laptop. This is a gross error that negates all security.
Other Notable Incidents
In May, developers of THORChain confirmed a hack of the cross-chain protocol for $10 million, after which the protocol's operation was suspended. On June 8, unknown attackers compromised wallets associated with the Humanity Protocol project, causing damage of approximately $31 million.
My expert conclusion: A record number of hacks with a decrease in total damage is an alarming signal for the industry. It indicates that attackers are adapting to new conditions, focusing on weaknesses in risk management rather than large-scale targets. Protocols urgently need to review their security systems, especially regarding key storage and administration, otherwise we risk seeing even more frequent, albeit less costly, incidents.