February was unusually quiet for crypto thieves. After months of eye-watering losses, the industry recorded just $26.5 million in hacking and fraud losses last month, according to blockchain security firm PeckShield, the smallest monthly figure in 11 months.
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That’s a number that compares to the carnage seen in early 2025, when a breach wiped out $1.5 billion from crypto exchange Bybit.
2 attacks did more damage
Of the 15 incidents recorded in February, two attacks accounted for most of the casualties. The larger of the two is YieldBlox, a DAO-managed lending pool, on February 21st. Attackers manipulated the token prices and removed $10 million from the protocol.
On the same day, the decentralized identity platform IoTeX also took a hit – nearly $9 million was taken by exploiting a private key. Together, these two events alone accounted for more than 70% of the month’s total losses.
Compared to January, the decline is hard to ignore. Reports from PeckShield show that February’s total of $26.5 million represents a 69% decline from $86 million a month ago.
#PeckShieldAlert In February 2026, the crypto space saw 15 major hacks for a total of $26.5 million, representing a 98.2% decrease compared to February 2025 ($1.5 billion, including $1.4 billion) # Bayt spill) and a significant 69.2% decrease in January 2026 ($86.01 million loss).# Ball 5 Hacks:… pic.twitter.com/Svp7SZWp5w
— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) March 1, 2026
According to a PeckShield spokesperson, part of the explanation is simply the lack of headline and billion-dollar violations. When no single attack dominates the numbers, the totals seem much more manageable.
Market conditions also played a role. Bitcoin fell below $70,000 in early February, sparking a broad market correction that seemed to shift focus away from protocol attacks.
For a long time, traders and institutions have been dealing with loss management and liquidity transfer. Reports suggest that such an environment tends to suppress rather than encourage exploitative activity.
Crypto security standards are getting tougher
Improvement may not depend entirely on luck or timing. Tighter risk controls, stronger counterparty vetting and better real-time monitoring on major platforms have all contributed to a more secure environment, analysts say.
Artificial intelligence is seen as a growing force in the fight against vulnerability. Automated code inspections, anomaly detection tools, and pre-deployment attack simulations solve problems before they become exploitable.
Experts say that if security standards keep pace with innovation, losses could be reduced throughout the year.
Phishing remains a persistent threat
Not everything is going in the right direction. Phishing attacks – where criminals pose as trusted contacts or platforms to steal login credentials and private keys – remain a serious and ongoing problem.
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Losses related to wallet phishing schemes fell sharply in 2025, dropping from $494 million to $83 million. But the threat has not disappeared.
According to PeckShield, bad actors are increasingly shifting their focus away from targeting code and toward targeting people. Tricking a user into giving access is often easier than breaking a well-tested smart contract.
The company urged both institutions and large owners to rely on multi-signature cold storage solutions and treat private key security as non-permissive.
Featured image from Unsplash, chart from TradingView
