Bitget, Liquid exploits push Q3 crypto hacks toward $1.2B

Compromised suppliers, developer tools and infrastructure components outside security audits drove about 77% of the quarter’s total losses, according to Hacken. Cryptocurrency hacks soared to $1.18 billion across 107 recorded incidents in the third quarter of 2026, according to security company Hacken. Hacken’s >Q3 report attributed 77% (about $906 million) to compromised suppliers or developer tools, publicly disclosed fixes that had not been deployed, or other components outside security reviews. The four largest incidents included the $387 million Bitget hack, the $320 million Liquid Network exploit, the $120 million Tectonic exploit, and the Coldcard firmware vulnerability, associated with an estimated $115 million in losses. This Q3 was the most damaging quarter for crypto hacks since Q1 2025, when Bybit’s $1.4 billion loss to North Korea pushed the total to $1.6 billion. Q3 losses in total amount and composition. Source: Hacken About 80% of the quarter’s losses were concentrated in four of the largest incidents, while 98 of the incidents recorded losses below $10 million. The median loss across all 107 incidents was $670,000. While supplier compromises and infrastructure failures drove much of the stolen value, smart contract incidents were the most frequent, accounting for $228 million in losses across 71 incidents as the most exploited attack vector. Related: Anthropic warns ‘AI worms’ may autonomously spread across devices like a virus Of the $1.18 billion lost, about $387 million was returned or reversed, accounting for the recovery of about 33% of gross losses. Following the Liquid Network hack, self-proclaimed “white hats” returned $272 million, representing about 85% of the stolen value. In the Tectonic incident, Cronos

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