Crypto Crime News

Crypto investigator ZachXBT has raised serious concerns about WhiteRock (WHITE), an emerging altcoin project he claims may be a rebranded extension of the disgraced Zkasino scheme.

A late-night distress call has exposed a sizeable cryptocurrency heist, according to 23pds, chief security officer at blockchain-forensics firm SlowMist.

Blockchain data suggests that quantitative investment firm Manifold has quietly accumulated a sizable amount of Curve Finance’s native token, CRV.

Basketball icon Shaquille O’Neal has agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle a lawsuit tied to his promotion of the now-bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, according to new court filings.

The fight over whether writing privacy-focused code is a crime is heating up on both sides of the Atlantic, and the crypto community is opening its wallet to defend two key Tornado Cash engineers.

A Boston federal court has shut the book on one of crypto’s longest-running fraud cases, ordering the shuttered platform My Big Coin to hand over almost $26 million.

President Javier Milei has been cleared of any ethical misconduct by Argentina’s Anti-Corruption Office after a controversial memecoin post led to investor losses topping $250 million.

ALEX Protocol, a DeFi platform built on Bitcoin’s Stacks layer, has suffered a second major breach—this time resulting in an estimated $14 million loss.

A Ukrainian man has been arrested for allegedly orchestrating a years-long cryptojacking scheme that compromised thousands of online accounts tied to a global hosting provider, authorities revealed this week.

An extensive international cybercrime network has been brought down after law enforcement seized 145 domains linked to BidenCash, a notorious online marketplace that thrived on trading stolen credit card data and compromised digital identities.

Hackers in the crypto world are changing course, moving away from exploiting smart contracts and turning their focus toward tricking users directly.

Coinbase is now facing mounting scrutiny after it allegedly sat on a serious data breach for over four months, exposing the personal information of nearly 70,000 users before taking action.

A major security lapse has rocked Taiwan-based crypto exchange BitoPro, which quietly suffered an $11.5 million hack earlier in May but failed to alert users for weeks.

A Nevada resident has been sentenced to six years in federal prison after orchestrating a sophisticated fraud operation that involved stealing U.S. Treasury checks and using stolen identities to access the funds.

French investigators have dismantled a group of 25 suspects—mostly under 24 years old—linked to a string of failed kidnappings aimed at wealthy individuals in the crypto space.

Shiba Inu’s Shibarium team has launched an internal investigation into alleged rug pulls carried out by actors operating within the network.

Following a major security breach at decentralized exchange Cetus, the Sui blockchain has moved swiftly to recover user funds.

French police have arrested more than a dozen individuals, including minors, in connection with a string of crypto-related kidnapping cases that have shaken Paris in recent weeks.

A bizarre cyberattack involving the hacked Instagram account of hip-hop group Migos has surfaced, allegedly as part of an attempted extortion scheme aimed at Solana co-founder Raj Gokal.

A federal judge has thrown out major fraud charges against Avraham Eisenberg, the trader accused of draining millions from DeFi platform Mango Markets, citing jurisdictional flaws in the government’s case.

An Italian man narrowly escaped a harrowing ordeal in New York after being kidnapped and tortured in an alleged scheme to extract access to his digital wealth.

A Massachusetts man has been handed a six-year prison sentence after federal authorities exposed his unlicensed crypto operation, which laundered over $1 million under the guise of a vending machine business.

The decentralized exchange Cetus, built on the Sui blockchain, has been hit with one of the largest DeFi exploits of the year, losing over $220 million in crypto assets.

An effort by Bitcoin SV investors to seek billions in compensation from major crypto exchanges has largely fallen flat in the UK Court of Appeal.

Panic swept through decentralized markets on Thursday after a suspected vulnerability in Cetus Protocol triggered a massive liquidity drain across several Sui-based tokens.

A previously undisclosed security breach has exposed sensitive user data of nearly 70,000 Coinbase customers, following what appears to be an internal compromise involving bribed support staff.

Braden Karony, once the public face of SafeMoon, has been found guilty in a major fraud case involving the misuse of billions in investor funds.

A data breach at Coinbase has triggered serious concerns after attackers accessed private user details—including home addresses—by bribing outsourced customer support staff.

Just days after securing its place in the S&P 500, Coinbase is now under federal investigation following a major security breach that exposed the personal data of several high-profile users.

Vladimir Smerkis, a key figure behind the crypto-powered Telegram Mini App Blum, has been arrested in Moscow amid allegations of large-scale fraud, according to Russian media reports.

As wealth in the cryptocurrency sector continues to grow, so do the dangers facing its most prominent players.

Hong Kong authorities have dismantled a sophisticated money laundering network accused of channeling over HK$118 million (USD $15 million) through a web of local bank accounts and crypto exchange shops.

A high-profile investigation into one of the largest cryptocurrency fraud operations this year has led to the arrest of a Wellington man, as authorities across New Zealand and the United States crack down on cross-border cybercrime.

As digital assets surge back into the spotlight, cybercriminals are ramping up their efforts—this time targeting major crypto exchanges.

A new breed of cyberattack is gaining traction, blending social engineering with AI-generated deepfakes to target government workers and crypto leaders.

A cybercrime crew composed mostly of California-based youth has been indicted for orchestrating a massive crypto heist, stealing over $260 million in Bitcoin and laundering it through an elaborate web of digital tactics and real-world crimes.

A group of investors has filed a lawsuit against Jonathan Mills, the founder of the Hashling NFT project, alleging he misappropriated millions raised through NFT sales and a connected Bitcoin mining venture.

Authorities in Europe have dismantled a major organized crime operation that used cryptocurrency to move tens of millions in illicit funds for drug and human trafficking networks.

A massive cybercrime marketplace run primarily through Telegram has been dismantled, marking a major blow to crypto-enabled fraud networks across Asia.

A daylight kidnapping attempt in Paris has escalated fears over the safety of crypto executives and their families, following a string of similar incidents in France.

A U.S. court has handed down a 30-year prison sentence to Mohammed Azharuddin Chhipa, who was found guilty of financing terrorism through cryptocurrency.

A major chapter in crypto’s legal reckoning closed this week as Alex Mashinsky, once a prominent name in digital lending, received a 12-year prison sentence.

Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky is asking for a significantly reduced prison sentence ahead of his May 8 sentencing, with his legal team pushing back hard against the U.S. Department of Justice’s call for a 20-year term.

The legal battle against the creators of Samourai Wallet has taken a sharp turn, as defense attorneys accuse federal prosecutors of suppressing a key legal interpretation from the Treasury Department that could dismantle the core of the government’s case.

A decades-long Bitcoin holder has reportedly lost over $300 million in a devastating crypto theft — one of the largest in recent memory.

In a cybersecurity twist that sounds more like espionage fiction than reality, Kraken recently intercepted an attempted infiltration by a North Korean hacker—disguised as a job seeker.

A massive crypto theft has rocked the community, with a staggering $330 million in Bitcoin stolen in a sophisticated scam now believed to be the result of social engineering.

Avraham Eisenberg, known for orchestrating the 2022 Mango Markets exploit, has been handed a 52-month prison sentence—but not for his crypto-related activities.

Loopscale, a decentralized finance platform built on Solana, was forced to pause its lending operations after a major security breach led to losses of around $5.8 million.

Alex Mashinsky, co-founder and former CEO of the defunct crypto lending platform Celsius, is scheduled to be sentenced on May 8, 2025, following his guilty plea to two federal criminal charges late last year.

A decentralized exchange targeted in a multi-million-dollar exploit has recovered its losses just days after the incident, thanks to an unexpected twist involving the hacker themselves.

A recent cyberattack targeting a UK government official’s social media account has highlighted ongoing concerns over digital impersonation and crypto scams.

A former NFT trader is facing potential prison time after admitting to hiding millions in profits from the IRS through undeclared sales of high-value digital assets.

Cybersecurity researchers are sounding the alarm after discovering a new and increasingly sophisticated attack targeting the crypto community.

Australia’s efforts to combat crypto-related fraud have intensified, with the country’s Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) targeting 95 companies allegedly involved in deceptive schemes like pig butchering scams.

Spanish police have busted a criminal network that used AI to run a global investment scam, arresting six individuals linked to the operation.

Mike McGlone, a senior commodity strategist at Bloomberg, has stirred the crypto community with his latest prediction about Bitcoin’s future price movement.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has announced new sanctions targeting a financial network that supports the Houthis, a group backed by Iran that has been responsible for numerous attacks on vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

A U.S. woman recently became the victim of a major cryptocurrency scam, losing millions of dollars after falling for a well-crafted deception.

The first quarter of 2025 has been marked by a significant surge in crypto hacks, with losses totaling over $1.63 billion.