Crypto Wealth Has Become a Serious Physical Security Risk

(AsiaGameHub) –   French officials have indicted 88 individuals following a surge of violent attacks targeting cryptocurrency holders. The incidents involve the practice commonly called wrench attacks, where criminals use threats, violence, or confinement to force victims to turn over their crypto passwords or private keys.

Good to Know

• France has documented more than 135 crypto-linked kidnapping and robbery cases since 2023.
• Wrench attacks focus on gaining access to private keys, passwords, and direct entry to digital wallets.
• Blockchain security company CertiK reported that wrench attacks grew 75% in 2025.

Crypto-related crime does not always take place via online hacks or phishing links. In France, authorities state that organized criminal groups have used intimidation and kidnapping to gain direct access to digital assets.

The National Anti-Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office, commonly known as PNACO, has tied more than 135 incidents to crypto-connected violence since 2023. Most recently, French authorities have indicted 88 people following a string of attacks targeting digital asset owners.

The term wrench attack takes its name from an xkcd webcomic. The concept is simple but frightening: instead of attempting to break encryption, a criminal threatens or harms the individual who controls the crypto wallet. For Bitcoin and other crypto users, this means protecting private keys now requires accounting for personal safety, not just online security.

A February report from SIRASCO, a branch of the Judicial Police, notes that most attacks follow a layered organizational structure. Plot organizers often operate from outside France, while recruiters based within France find young people with past criminal records. These recruits then carry out online threats, physical assaults, or kidnappings.

Victims are most often men between 20 and 35 years old with open, visible connections to crypto, including investors, entrepreneurs, and crypto influencers. Public displays of wealth, traceable online activity, and known involvement in digital assets make some users easier for criminals to identify as targets.

CertiK has labeled physical attacks against crypto holders a “structural threat” to digital asset ownership. The blockchain security firm confirmed wrench attacks jumped 75% in 2025. The company recorded 71 incidents that year, with total losses topping $40.9 million, which is a 44% increase from the previous year.