Boltz Suspends Bitcoin Swap Service After Spike in AI-Assisted Automated Attacks

Boltz has suspended its Bitcoin swap service indefinitely after a sharp increase in automated, AI-assisted attacks targeting its infrastructure. The noncustodial swap provider said Monday it has dealt with multiple exploit attempts over the past few months. While each incident was contained, Boltz said attackers were identifying and adapting to weaknesses faster than its relatively small development team could patch them. The company added that attacks intensified over the past few days, and recent security scans revealed issues that made an immediate restart unsafe. Boltz has not provided a timeline for reopening and cautioned users not to expect swaps to resume soon. Rising automated probing Boltz said its systems have faced increasingly frequent \u0022automated AI-assisted probing\u0022 throughout the year and believes multiple well-resourced groups may be targeting the platform while fixes are developed. The company has not shared technical details on the exploits or evidence of how artificial intelligence was used. Security observers note that AI tools can help attackers scan public code, test for vulnerabilities, and rapidly iterate on failed exploit attempts—advantages that can pressure smaller open-source teams. Attackers can run continuous, automated discovery, while defenders must still triage findings, write patches, and test deployments. PayPerQ, a pay-per-prompt AI service that accepts cryptocurrency, has also reported frequent exploit attempts it suspects are AI-driven. Solana Foundation security chief Michael Coates has previously argued that crypto firms will need autonomous defenses because human teams cannot respond at machine speed. Customer funds not exposed, but disruptions possible Boltz said customer funds were never at risk because swaps are noncustodial. The service relies on atomic swaps to move Bitcoin and Bitcoin-denominated assets across the Bitcoin mainnet, the Lightning Network, and the Liquid Network, with users retaining control of their assets rather than depositing them with Boltz. Even so, noncustodial infrastructure can still be affected by software flaws, interrupted transactions, and outages. Boltz advised users with unfinished swaps to keep their swap ID, refund file, recovery keys, and other transaction details. The company said its API will remain available to process refunds and that its support team will continue assisting users. Why the pause matters Boltz is used to move funds across Bitcoin layers without relying on a centralized exchange, and the suspension may impact wallets and applications that depend on Boltz for Lightning or Liquid swaps. DefiLlama reported about $262,187 in total value locked at the time of publication, though the figure may not reflect the full value of transactions routed through the platform. Boltz said it is reviewing systems and deploying fixes. Until further updates, users are advised to avoid initiating new swaps and to use only official support channels for refunds or recovery assistance.