DeFi protocol hackers successfully stole approximately $169 million in cryptocurrency during the first quarter of 2026, according to data from DeFiLlama. The figure represents losses from 34 different decentralized finance protocols and applications, though it's significantly lower than Q1 2025's $1.58 billion in total losses.
The largest single exploit was against Step Finance, which lost $40 million in a private key breach in January 2026. Other major incidents included $26.4 million stolen from Truebit and various attacks on platforms like Movie Token and Neutrl. The recent Drift Protocol attack, losing $285 million, has pushed Q2 numbers significantly higher.
Security experts note that crypto-related cybercrime has evolved into highly organized networks that systematically scan smart contracts for vulnerabilities. Most major attacks are attributed to North Korean-linked groups, with the open-source nature of DeFi protocols making them particularly vulnerable to sophisticated threat actors who can study code and identify security gaps.
