France's "Wrench Attack" Reappears: Why Crypto Holders Are Becoming Targets of Violent Crime

Armed Robbery Targeting Cryptocurrency Holders Occurs Again in France. This Monday evening, three masked men broke into a residence in Manosque, threatened a woman with a gun, and stole a USB drive containing her partner’s cryptocurrency data. Although no injuries occurred, the incident highlights a deeper issue: in France, violent crimes targeting crypto wealth are becoming normalized.

Incident Details and Response

According to France’s Le Parisien, the robbery took place in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence department. The attackers threatened the victim with a pistol and used physical violence before fleeing with the USB drive. The woman managed to free herself within minutes and reported the incident to the police in time. Local authorities have opened an investigation, which is being jointly handled by the regional criminal investigation department and the national police.

Spread of “Wrench Attack” Phenomenon

Such incidents are known in the industry as “wrench attacks,” referring to violence used to coerce victims into handing over encrypted assets or private key data. According to a public database maintained by security firm Casa, these crimes are far from isolated cases.

France has become the most frequent region in Europe for such violent crimes, with case numbers far exceeding other European countries.

Reasons Why France Has Become a Crime Hotspot

Cybercrime consultant David Sehyeon analyzed the root causes of this phenomenon:

• High Crime Baseline: France’s overall crime rate is relatively high, providing fertile ground for professional criminal groups
• Visibility of Wealth: Entrepreneurs, traders, and public figures holding cryptocurrencies are quite conspicuous, making them easy targets
• Knowledge Growth: Increasing local expertise in digital assets enables criminals to better identify and target holders
• Organized Trends: These factors collectively create a breeding ground for more opportunistic and organized crypto crimes

Implications for Holders

This series of events raises a practical question: the fundamental difference between crypto wealth and traditional finance is that private keys are held by individuals. This grants holders absolute control over their assets but also exposes them to significant security risks.

Risk Dimensions to Pay Attention To

• Physical Security: The physical location and safety of storage devices like USB drives and hardware wallets
• Information Security: Leakage of wealth information that could lead to targeted attacks
• Social Engineering: Criminals may use various methods to obtain victim information
• Emergency Preparedness: Self-defense and emergency response capabilities in urgent situations

Summary

The frequent occurrence of “wrench attacks” in France reflects a real issue that the crypto industry must confront during its rapid development. As the scale of digital assets and the number of holders grow, organized crime targeting such wealth is also escalating. This is not only a personal safety concern but also a sign of industry maturity—more people owning real wealth makes them more vulnerable to crime. For cryptocurrency holders, technical security measures (cold wallets, multi-signature) are just the basics; physical security and information confidentiality are equally important. This also signals to regulators and law enforcement agencies that more resources need to be allocated to combat these emerging crimes.