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BTC The cryptography that protects your Bitcoin is almost indestructible, but not your front door.
France has just revealed this disturbing reality with one number: According to data provided to the media by the French Ministry of the Interior, there were 90 cases of kidnapping, abduction, extortion, threats and violent theft related to cryptocurrencies between January 1 and mid-August 2026. This means that on average, a new case occurs every two and a half days.
During this period, police arrested 223 people and imprisoned 126 others. However, attacks continue to spread, from Paris to Marseille to Strasbourg, Toulouse, Grenoble and Nantes.
Why did France become the world capital of "physical crowbar attacks"?
The so-called "crowbar attack" is a slang in the crypto circle, which refers to one of the oldest hacking methods: skipping the encryption link and directly threatening the person holding the private key. For many years, France has been at the top of the global rankings of such cases.
The physical bitcoin attack directory long-maintained by Jameson Lopp shows that since 2014, a total of 365 cases have been recorded in 60 countries around the world, with France ranking first. Security firm Gart.io tracks 73 attacks in France as of 2026, up from 66 in the United States and 27 in the United Kingdom. Chainalysis counted 30 public incidents of violence in France before mid-year and admitted that the actual number is likely to be higher.
The data on 90 cases released by the Ministry of the Interior far exceeds all the above statistics. Since the department only started recording such crimes from January 1, 2026, there is no official year-on-year comparison data. But Chainalysis data shows that since the end of 2024, attacks in France have been well above historical baseline levels, and the number of cases in 2026 is expected to be nearly four times the number of known cases in 2025.
How did leaked tax data target French cryptocurrency holders?
Here are the parts that should concern every cryptocurrency holder in Europe. Eric Jardine, principal researcher at Chainalysis, believes the surge is most likely related to a major data breach. In 2024, a tax official in the Paris area leaked information on French taxpayers 'personal, financial and cryptocurrency positions. At the end of November of the same year, attacks began to surge.
In January 2026, French cryptocurrency tax platform Waltio disclosed a data breach that affected about 50,000 users, providing criminals with a second target list. Such leaks expose who owns cryptocurrencies, how much, where they live and how to contact them. An attacker's hardest job-finding targets worth taking risks-is done before anyone picks up the crowbar.
在已知居住地的法国受害者中，93%是法国国民，而非拥有大量加密货币的游客。包括Bull Bitcoin创始人弗朗西斯·普利奥特（Francis Pouliot）在内的批评人士甚至指出，欧盟的DAC8加密货币报告制度扩大了强制收集加密货币用户数据的范围，这使得“了解你的客户”（KYC）流程实际上变成了一份“绑架指南”。
为何犯罪分子会绑架加密货币投资者的家属？
最令人毛骨悚然的趋势在于谁被绑架了。到2026年初，在全球范围内，亲属和熟人在暴力加密货币事件中占25%至30%。而在法国，这一比例超过40%。
今年5月，六名男子涉嫌试图在巴黎附近从塞巴斯蒂安·博杰特（Sébastien Borget，《The Sandbox》联合创始人）夫妇家中绑架其妻子，其中一名袭击者伪装成快递员以打开大门。8月，一对居住在法国农村的夫妇在购买了一处此前由加密货币百万富翁拥有的房屋后，经历了三次单独的入室未遂事件，因为泄露的税务记录中仍列出了该地址。
2025年，一名加密货币企业家的父亲在巴黎被绑架两天，期间绑匪切断了他的部分手指并索要560万美元。今年4月，在菲尼斯泰尔省，一个家庭的五名成员在家中遭拘禁。
Jardin said this pattern suggests criminals conduct reconnaissance first: through social media, blockchain analysis, leaked data and inside information. Currently, French authorities treat these cases as organized crimes and handle them through JUNALCO (National Organized Crime Jurisdiction).
How to protect your cryptocurrency from crowbar attacks?
Standard protection strategies are still important. Hardware wallets, backup metal mnemonic words stored outside the home, and maintaining a healthy skepticism about phishing links remain basic defenses.
But none of this will stop those who already know your address.
The new rules are about information, not keys. Never discuss your positions in public or on social media. Remove your name from exchange leaderboards and conference badges. Consider adopting a multi-signature setting to ensure that no single individual (including yourself) can transfer funds individually, and use a "coerced" wallet with a time lock so that some funds can be surrendered if threatened. Check whether your tax software or exchange has had a data breach, and if so, assume your address is already in the hands of criminals.
As the media said: Cryptography can protect wallets, but it cannot stop a $5 crowbar.
