There is something uniquely distressing about losing cryptocurrency. Every transaction is permanently recorded on a public blockchain, so victims can often see their stolen funds moving in real time — yet have no way to recover them.

“You can see your money sitting there on the blockchain, but there’s nothing you can do,” says Helen, a UK resident who lost around $315,000 (£250,000) in crypto. She compares it to watching a burglar stack your valuables on the far side of an impassable chasm.

For seven years, Helen and her husband Richard (not his real name) invested steadily in Cardano, believing in its long-term potential. They were careful, storing access information in cloud storage — but hackers breached the account.

In February 2024, after a small test transaction, criminals transferred all their coins into their own wallets in a swift, silent attack. For months, the couple watched their savings move between wallets, powerless to intervene.

Despite having the criminals’ wallet addresses and reports from police and Cardano developers, the funds remain unrecoverable. Their only hope now is to save enough to hire private investigators.

A Surge in Crypto Crime

Crypto ownership has grown rapidly. An FCA survey in August 2024 suggested 12% of UK adults — about seven million people — own crypto. Globally, an estimated 560 million people now hold digital assets.

With that growth came crime. According to blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis, crypto theft reached more than $3.4bn (£2.5bn) in 2025, a level broadly consistent since 2020.

Most losses come from large-scale hacks of crypto firms — such as the $1.5bn stolen by North Korean hackers from exchange Bybit in February 2025 — which are often absorbed by companies. But attacks on individuals are rising fast.

Chainalysis reports individual crypto thefts doubled from 40,000 cases in 2022 to 80,000 in 2024. Hacking, scams, and coercion of individuals accounted for roughly 20% of stolen crypto value in 2025 — about $713m (£532m). The true figure may be higher, as many victims never report losses.

Unlike traditional finance, crypto theft rarely comes with consumer protection. The FCA warns crypto remains “largely unregulated and high-risk” in the UK: if something goes wrong, victims should be prepared to lose everything.

Burglaries, Kidnappings and “Wrench Attacks”

Criminals target crypto holders worldwide. Researchers at Elliptic warn that North Korean hackers increasingly pursue wealthy individuals, while younger criminal groups use social engineering and stolen data.

In the US, a group calling itself the Social Engineering Enterprise allegedly stole over $260m between 2023 and 2025 by impersonating crypto platforms and coercing victims into transferring funds. Prosecutors say the group spent the money on private jets, luxury cars, and designer goods — and in some cases organised home break-ins to steal hardware wallets.

Physical violence is rising. So-called “wrench attacks” — where victims are threatened or assaulted to force access to crypto wallets — have been reported across Europe.

In Spain, a man was shot and held captive during an attempted crypto extortion; his body was later found in woodland. In France, masked gangs have attempted kidnappings linked to crypto wealth, including the 2025 abduction of Ledger co-founder David Balland, whose finger was severed before police rescued him.

Last month, UK police arrested six people after masked attackers forced a victim to transfer £1.5m in cryptocurrency during a roadside ambush.

Old Tricks, New Targets

Many attacks rely on traditional fraud techniques, now amplified by vast quantities of stolen personal data.

“Bitcoin millionaires are becoming so frequent,” says Matthew Jones of crypto security firm Haven. “Stolen databases are constantly enriching target lists.”

A recent breach at luxury goods group Kering, owner of Gucci and Balenciaga, exposed customer data including spending patterns. One hacker told the BBC he bought the data for $300,000 and used it to identify wealthy targets, scamming Coinbase users out of at least $1.5m.

“I cross-reference hacked databases to find rich people with current phone numbers and emails,” he said. “I tripled my money very fast.”

Kering has said its systems are now secure and that no financial or government ID data was stolen.

Bottom Line

Cryptocurrency’s transparency does not equal safety. As digital wealth becomes mainstream, criminals are combining high-tech hacks with low-tech intimidation — and for many victims, once the money is gone, there is no way back.