Crypto hacks topped $6.48 billion in October

Crypto losses jumped in October

Crypto recorded $6.48 billion in losses from 56 major hacks in October 2026, according to blockchain security firm PeckShield. That total was about 745% higher than September losses of $766.49 million.

The period was Cybersecurity Awareness Month. The National Cybersecurity Alliance set the theme as “Don’t Make It Easy for Them.”

Record losses in a single month

• 56 major hacks were tallied in October 2026.
• Total losses reached $6.48 billion.
• September losses were $766.49 million.
• The Binance incident accounted for about $6.3 billion.
• About $3 billion from Binance was already frozen on-chain, which means the funds were stopped on the blockchain network.
• Ledger users lost a combined $90 million through spyware-implanted devices.

Binance outlines multi-stage attack

Binance is an exchange, a platform where people buy and sell crypto. Binance described a sophisticated, multi-stage campaign behind the attack on October 29.

The campaign began in June, when an employee downloaded a malicious version of the package manager Homebrew. In September, another engineer was instructed to download an assignment containing a malicious code repository during a staged job interview. The attackers extended their reach during October before the attack.

The FBI has officially attributed the attack to the North Korea-affiliated TraderTraitor. The DPRK has denied involvement.

Other crypto incidents added to the total

Ledger users who bought devices through reseller CryptoBilis lost $90 million in assets. The devices contained spyware implants, which are hidden programs used to steal information.

Other reported incidents included MetaMask unstaking $1.4 billion in ETH after a security scare, CoinDCX and a $16 million hack, Keystone destroying 19,000 units of inventory due to a compromised key, and data leaks affecting Coinbase and Bithumb users.

On October 8, Ethereum researcher Justin Drake urged the industry to go “bunker mode” in the face of AI threats. Vitalik Buterin warned users not to scramble to move funds, while saying quantum-vulnerable and AI-vulnerable cryptography should be taken seriously.

Incidents were not limited to crypto

A PHP vulnerability threatened an estimated 70% of websites. Some governments shut off their sites as a precaution.

Supermarket fridges in France were hacked and set to high temperatures. Spoilage was estimated to be in the tens of millions of euros.

What is confirmed and what is still unclear

Confirmed figures from PeckShield include 56 major hacks and $6.48 billion in losses for October. Binance confirmed the timeline for its attack and the amount frozen.

Attribution remains disputed. The FBI attributed the Binance attack to TraderTraitor, and the DPRK denied involvement. The source also notes that many smaller incidents received no public post-mortem, meaning no detailed public report from the affected team.

Early November brought more reports

A bug in Linux has been dubbed “worst bug in the history of the internet.” That description is a claim in the source, not a confirmed ranking.

Someone was reported to be hacking supermarket fridges again, this time across Europe. Brazilian exchange Mercado Bitcoin lost almost $50 million, the source reported.

Blockchain sleuth ZachXBT traced around $130 million of stolen funds. He believes the victim was a large financial institution in Western Europe, but nobody has admitted to being the victim. That identification is therefore unconfirmed.

Source for this report

• Protos