The crypto industry has set a grim record: 83 hacks in a single quarter — an absolute all-time low.
The second quarter of 2026 went down in crypto industry history as the most "hacked" period: analysts recorded 83 attacks on protocols—an absolute record in terms of the number of incidents. However, total losses amounted to $755.3 million, significantly lower than the peak values of previous years.
The largest targets were KelpDAO, which lost $293 million, and Drift Protocol, from which $280 million was stolen. These two attacks together account for more than 75% of total losses. A particularly alarming trend is observed in the cross-chain bridge segment: they accounted for $351 million in losses, 38% of which was the incident involving the LayerZero OFT bridge, linked to the KelpDAO hack. Another 37% of losses were caused by administrative access compromises and token price manipulations. Private key theft, contrary to expectations, accounted for only 5.66% of total damages.
Despite the record number of attacks, this quarter was not the most expensive in terms of loss volume. The undisputed leader remains the fourth quarter of 2020, when damages reached $3.56 billion. This points to structural changes in the ecosystem: instead of isolated "giga-exploits," we are seeing a constant stream of smaller but more frequent attacks.
Experts link the rise in incidents to a sharp decline in overall liquidity. Since the beginning of the year, total value locked (TVL) has dropped from $164 billion to approximately $73 billion. At the same time, the pace of protocol development significantly outstrips the maturity of their risk management systems. A striking example is projects using a "3-of-6" multi-signature scheme but storing three keys on a single laptop. This is not a technical vulnerability but a fundamental flaw in security architecture.
In May, the THORChain team confirmed a $10 million hack, after which the protocol was temporarily halted. And on June 8, unknown attackers compromised Humanity Protocol wallets, causing $31 million in damages. These incidents only confirm the overall trend: security in the crypto industry remains a weak link, and without a radical overhaul of asset protection approaches, we risk seeing even more alarming figures in the future.
My expert commentary: The rise in the number of attacks alongside a decrease in total damages is a troubling signal. It indicates that hackers are adapting faster than protocols. If the industry does not begin implementing multi-layered security systems and rigorous audits, the next quarter could break records not only in the number of incidents but also in the volume of losses.