How does someone become a target of cryptocurrency criminals? Three cases that reveal the sector's vulnerability

The crypto industry faces a disturbing reality: criminals have discovered that accessing digital wallets is more efficient than traditional bank robberies. And the perpetrators operate with surgical precision, identifying targets through digital clues left on social media, industry conferences, and public events. This month has documented at least three large-scale thefts illustrating a worrying pattern: the sophistication of these attacks is increasing, and no one in the crypto ecosystem seems to be completely safe.

The Domestic Attack in Silicon Valley: When Showing Wealth Becomes a Target

San Francisco hosts mansions of tech elites. It was precisely in one of these residences that on November 4th, an assault occurred that would shake the local crypto community. Lachy Groom, a 31-year-old executive at Stripe and ex-partner of OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman, was the victim of a meticulously orchestrated home robbery.

Surveillance cameras captured the approach of the attacker: an individual with a dark hoodie, sunglasses, and deliberate movements, carrying a package box. His tactic was simple but effective. When the doorbell rang, he identified himself as a delivery person: “I have a package for Joshua that requires a signature.” When the door opened, he asked to borrow a pen—an ordinary pretext that allowed the intruder to slip into the residence in seconds.

What followed was brutally different from what police reports would later describe. The attacker brandished a weapon, immob