Bitget’s $388M hack pushes Q3 crypto security losses past $1B
Crypto security losses reached $1.26 billion in Q3 across 247 incidents, with September alone accounting for roughly $769 million.
In the third quarter of 2026, total crypto security losses surpassed $1.26 billion, marking a significant increase from the previous quarter. The surge in losses, up 53.9% from $819.4 million in Q2, was primarily driven by the $387.5 million hack of crypto exchange Bitget. This incident accounted for approximately 31% of the total losses, making it the most substantial security incident of the quarter according to blockchain security firm CertiK.
September alone contributed to a staggering $769 million in losses, representing the highest single-month figure in Q3. Of the 247 recorded security incidents, nearly 96% were attributed to exploits, with Bitget's hack being the most costly, followed by the Liquid Network's $319 million exploit, Tectonic's $120 million, and the $112.7 million Coldcard theft.
Certik's data indicated that about $273 million of the September losses were frozen or returned, leaving adjusted losses of $495.3 million. The exchange itself responded to the hack by suspending withdrawals and detecting unauthorized transfers from some of its hot wallets. Bitget attributed the breach to a vulnerability in a third-party security product, which allowed attackers to obtain internal credentials and manipulate withdrawal commands. The incident was traced back to a zero-day exploit identified on August 31.
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