- Sensitive data belonging to Solana’s co-founder and his wife was leaked on social media
- Crypto losses from hacks increased by 131% in Q1 2025
Solana [SOL] co-founder Raj Gokal was the victim of a recent data breach, with his key personal details like IDs and passports shared on Instagram.
The photos of the co-founder and his wife, alongside their IDs and passports, appeared like typical KYC (know your customer) data during sign-up processes across most regulated crypto platforms.
According to reports, the sensitive data was posted on U.S-based rapper Migos’ Instagram page, which also appeared to have been hacked. Based on the captions on the post, user Andy speculated it could have been a failed extortion attempt by the attackers.
“Caption reads ‘you should’ve paid the 40 BTC’ which reads like a failed bribe.”
Based on the press time market price, that would allude to a bribery attempt of over $4.3 million. At the time of writing, Instagram had deleted the post.
Hike in crypto hacks in 2025
Reacting to the incident, renowned Web3 researcher ZachXBT stated that Gokal’s accounts may have been a target of social engineering by cyber criminals.
“Think Raj’s personal accounts got social engineered, and they tried to extort him for funds with the PII obtained. Guess he didn’t pay, so they started trolling and posted it after they compromised Migos Instagram account today.”
About a week ago, Gokal warned his X followers that attackers tried to get hold of his personal accounts, including email and social media.
Interestingly, this happened after the Coinbase exchange confirmed a breach that compromised users’ data on 15 May. In fact, some X users claimed that Gokal’s sensitive data may have been from the hack.
Although the co-founder didn’t disclose whether he had lost funds after the breach, overall crypto losses linked to hacks have soared in 2025.
For example – According to the PeckShield security report, Q1 2025 saw over 60 hacks, leading to $1.63 billion losses – Majorly dominated by the Bybit hack.
“Q1 2025 witnessed 60+ crypto hacks, resulting in total losses of $1.63B, a YoY increase of 131% compared to $706M in Q1 2024.”
Source: PeckShield/X
In Q2, Sui-based Cetus Protocol saw the loss of $223 million. For the Coinbase breach, the reported compensation claims may exceed $400 million, underscoring that DeFi and centralized platforms have been key targets for hackers.
This calls for greater awareness and caution when engaging with links from unknown sources or people claiming to be support staff from Coinbase or any other crypto platform.
