CertiK projects 130 crypto wrench attacks in 2026
CertiK projects 130 crypto ‘wrench’ extortion attacks in 2026 after 34 incidents and about $101 million in losses Jan-Apr; France reported 24 cases.
Blockchain security firm CertiK projected 130 “wrench” extortion attacks in 2026 after documenting 34 verified incidents from January through April and estimating about $101 million in losses. Twenty-four of the attacks were reported in France.
The firm reported 13 incidents in January, five in February, 10 in March and five in April. It attributed the February decline to coordinated police operations across Europe in late January and noted a sharp rebound in March. The $101 million estimate covers ransom payments, frozen funds and losses from failed extortion demands tied to the verified cases.
Europe accounted for 28 of the 34 verified attacks. France logged 24 cases in the first four months, exceeding the 20 recorded in all of 2025. The French Interior Ministry confirmed 41 incidents linked to physical attacks since January, a rate of roughly one every 2.5 days. North America saw incidents fall to three from nine year over year, and Asia declined to two from 25.
CertiK reported that attackers are shifting from exploiting software vulnerabilities to targeting people directly as wallet and protocol security improve. The firm pointed to the concentration of major industry firms in France, recent leaks of sensitive personal and financial data, and local practices of publicly disclosing wealth as factors that can make holders easier to identify and locate.
The report warned, “physical coercion will remain the economically most rational attack path.”
Law enforcement operations briefly disrupted some networks but did not stop the overall rise in cases, CertiK noted. Reported losses so far include paid ransoms, funds frozen by exchanges and funds lost when extortion attempts failed.
The report recommended stronger data privacy practices, tighter controls on public disclosures that reveal asset ownership, and closer cooperation among exchanges, custodians and law enforcement to reduce the risk to identified holders.
CertiK maintained its projection that 2026 could end with 130 wrench attacks and “hundreds of millions” in losses for crypto holders and the sector.
