Crypto Hackers Exploit Unverified Smart Contracts, Steal $36.7M

Crypto hackers have been exploiting vulnerabilities in unverified smart contracts to steal millions of dollars from decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.

According to Chainalysis, a blockchain analytics firm, attackers have stolen approximately $36.7 million from five major DeFi protocols over the past six months by targeting unverified contracts.

The firm identified four key incidents involving unverified protocol contracts between January and May 2026. The largest attack targeted Truebit on January 8, resulting in losses of approximately $26.2 million.

Chainalysis suggests that advances in artificial intelligence and smart contract decompilation tools are making it easier for attackers to reverse-engineer hidden code and identify exploitable weaknesses.