Key Takeaways
A user on Venus Protocol has lost $13.5 million in a phishing scam.
Blockchain security firm PeckShield reported $163.2 million in losses across 16 major exploits in August.
Notable cases included a Bitcoin investor tricked out of $91.4 million, and Turkish exchange BTCTurk suffering its second $54 million hack in just two months.
Venus Protocol, a decentralized finance platform for lending and trading crypto, has paused operations after a user lost over $13 million in a phishing scam.
The incident comes after crypto scams surged in August, with losses exceeding $163 million, a 15% increase over July.
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Venus Protocol Paused
Blockchain security firm PeckShield reported on Tuesday, September 2, that a user had $27 million drained after falling victim to a phishing scam.
However, the firm later corrected the number to $13.5 million, stating the initial estimates “were higher as we did not exclude the debt position.”
#PeckShieldAlert A user of @VenusProtocol has been drained ~$27M in crypto after falling for a #phishing scam.
The victim approved a malicious transaction, granting token approval to the attacker's address (0x7fd8…202a) for asset transfer. pic.twitter.com/NwkVlDxxOZ— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) September 2, 2025
Venus Protocol confirmed on X shortly after that it appeared to be the mistake of the user, and that the protocol had been paused while they investigated.
“We will keep everyone updated as we investigate. Protocol is paused while security reviews are underway,” Venus Protocol stated.
Phishing Scams
A crypto phishing scam involves bad actors impersonating genuine crypto platforms or services.
They trick individuals into providing sensitive details such as wallet passwords or private keys.
According to PeckShield, the victim approved a malicious transaction, “granting token approval to the attacker’s address for asset transfer.”
Crypto Scams Surge
On Monday, PeckShield reported that 16 major exploits drained $163.2 million from exchanges, platforms, and individual users in August, marking a 15% jump from July.
The most shocking crypto incident in August was also a severe case of social engineering.
A Bitcoin investor lost 783 BTC, valued at $91.4 million at the time, after being deceived by attackers impersonating customer support from both a trading platform and a hardware wallet provider.
By convincing the victim to share credentials and authorize a transfer, the scammers carried out one of the largest individual thefts in crypto history.
Despite that massive scam, traditional exploits also took their toll.
Crypto exchange Turkey’s BTCTurk experienced yet another disaster, losing $54 million in August, barely two months after a nearly identical $54 million hack in June 2024.
With more than $100 million drained in just over a year, serious questions are mounting over the platform’s ability to protect customer assets.
The rise in August follows an even sharper increase in July, when hack-related losses surged 27% from June.
