The dismemberment case on the beaches of Dubai is just the tip of the iceberg. In 2025, 65 violent attacks against cryptocurrency holders revealed a harsh reality—digital wealth is pushing holders into dangerous situations in the physical world.
In 2025, as the market value of cryptocurrencies soared, violent crimes against holders surged simultaneously. Hasib Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly, analyzed the "Ransomware Attack" database and found that there were a total of 65 such incidents this year, a significant increase compared to previous years.
1. Crime Wave: Rising Numbers and Increasing Violence
Analyzing security data in the cryptocurrency industry reveals a disturbing trend. According to the latest statistics from the "Ransomware Attack" database, violent incidents against cryptocurrency holders reached 65 in 2025.
This number not only sets a historical high but also indicates that a crime pattern is forming.
● Database maintainer James Lope has long tracked such cases, referring to these crimes as "Ransomware Attacks," meaning attackers abandon complex technical hacks in favor of simple physical violence—just as directly and effectively as threatening victims with a wrench.
● Equally concerning is the escalation in the level of violence associated with these crimes. Early attacks were mostly technical thefts or minor robberies, while the cases in 2025 exhibited clear violent characteristics.
● The proportion of serious cases involving armed robberies, home invasions, kidnappings, and severe personal injuries has significantly increased. In 2025, there were 4 cases that resulted in the death of victims, including the shocking dismemberment and burial of Russian cryptocurrency tycoon Roman Novak and his wife in Dubai.
2. Regional Analysis: Western Europe and Asia-Pacific as Hard-Hit Areas, North America Relatively Safe
● Globally, violent crimes against cryptocurrency holders show distinct regional characteristics. Western Europe and the Asia-Pacific region have become the areas with the largest increase in cases, as these regions are not only active markets for cryptocurrency trading but also home to a large number of high-net-worth holders.
● Attackers often selectively choose their targets, having some understanding of the victims' asset status. Although North America has also seen an increase in the number of cases, it remains one of the relatively safest regions. This may be related to the more developed law enforcement systems and crime deterrents in countries like the United States and Canada.
● The legal environment, law enforcement intensity, and public safety conditions in different regions all affect the frequency of attacks. Notably, the borderless nature of cryptocurrencies interacts complexly with the regional nature of crime. Attackers may plan crimes across borders, while victims are limited by the jurisdiction and investigative capabilities of local law enforcement agencies.
3. Motivations: Dual Drivers of Wealth Effect and Population Base
● The driving factors behind the rise in violent incidents are complex and multifaceted, but data analysis reveals several key variables. The most straightforward explanation directly links the surge in crime to the increase in cryptocurrency market value. Regression analysis shows that about 45% of the fluctuations in violent incidents can be explained by cryptocurrency prices themselves. Rising prices make holders more attractive targets.
● However, explaining solely by price is not comprehensive. As cryptocurrencies become more popular, the base of holders has significantly expanded. From 2015 to 2025, the monthly active users of Coinbase alone grew from 2 million to 120 million, a 60-fold increase.
When calculated per capita, the violence risk faced by each user in 2025 is comparable to the levels of 2021 and significantly lower than before 2019.
● The reality under the dual drivers is that the absolute number of cases has risen due to the increase in the population base, but individual risk has not amplified correspondingly. Price fluctuations create opportunities for crime, while user growth expands the potential victim pool.
4. Security Dilemma: The Paradox of Anonymity and Vulnerability
● One of the core features of cryptocurrency design—anonymity—protects user privacy while also creating a unique security dilemma. On-chain transactions are difficult to trace, but holders themselves are exposed in the physical world. Once attackers identify a target, they can bypass all encryption protections and directly target the holder.
● This dilemma is vividly reflected in the cases of 2025. Attack methods have shifted from technical hacks to physical coercion, with hackers no longer attempting to crack encryption algorithms but instead obtaining private keys or mnemonic phrases through kidnapping, torture, or threats of harm to victims.
In such cases, regardless of how advanced the encryption technology is, once personal safety is threatened, most victims will ultimately choose to surrender their assets.
● This shift presents a new challenge to holders' security awareness. Traditionally focused on digital security, the cryptocurrency community must now also pay attention to physical security. Personal privacy protection has become the first line of defense against attacks, and how to participate in the crypto economy without exposing wealth status has become an urgent issue to address.
5. Defense Strategies: Comprehensive Upgrade from Technical Protection to Physical Security
In the face of increasingly severe physical security threats, cryptocurrency holders need to build a comprehensive protection system.
● Basic protective measures include residential security, privacy protection, and cautious behavior. Choosing a secure living environment, avoiding wearing cryptocurrency-related identifiers in public, and using data deletion services to clear personal information are all effective means to reduce risk.
● Technical defenses should establish a layered fund management system. Prepare a separate hot wallet to store a small amount of "disposable funds," isolating it from major assets; diversify funds across multiple platforms and devices; and use multi-signature wallets to increase withdrawal difficulty.
● Industry and regulatory protections are equally important. As cases increase, law enforcement agencies are paying more attention to crimes related to cryptocurrencies. The 2025 report from the Financial Action Task Force directly prompted multiple countries to strengthen regulations on exchanges, requiring unlicensed platforms to "obtain licenses or exit the market."
Increased institutional participation also brings more professional security practices to the industry. Recent outlooks from Wall Street giants and the crypto industry indicate that stablecoins, artificial intelligence, and privacy will become key development areas, and these technological advancements are expected to indirectly enhance user security levels.
The physical security boundaries of the crypto world are being redefined. As threats from quantum computing and state-level hacking activities simultaneously approach digital fortresses, violent crimes against holders are breaking through security lines in the most primitive ways.
A cryptocurrency tycoon in Dubai installed fingerprint locks, surveillance cameras, and…
Join our community to discuss and become stronger together!
Official Telegram community: https://t.me/aicoincn
AiCoin Chinese Twitter: https://x.com/AiCoinzh
OKX benefits group: https://aicoin.com/link/chat?cid=l61eM4owQ
Binance benefits group: https://aicoin.com/link/chat?cid=ynr7d1P6Z
免责声明：本文章仅代表作者个人观点，不代表本平台的立场和观点。本文章仅供信息分享，不构成对任何人的任何投资建议。用户与作者之间的任何争议，与本平台无关。如网页中刊载的文章或图片涉及侵权，请提供相关的权利证明和身份证明发送邮件到support@aicoin.com，本平台相关工作人员将会进行核查。
