CoinGecko’s Cybersecurity Score Now Runs on CORE3: What Changed for 166 Exchanges
CoinGecko, the world’s largest independent cryptocurrency data aggregator, and CORE3, Hacken’s risk infrastructure layer for digital assets, today announced that the cybersecurity component of CoinGecko’s Trust Score for centralized exchanges has migrated from CER.live to CORE3.
CoinGecko’s exchange cybersecurity score was powered by CER.live’s framework for six years. The migration to CORE3 brings a forward-looking assessment of emerging risks of cryptocurrency exchanges before they become losses.
The migration covers 166 centralized exchanges. Individual exchange cybersecurity scores are expected to change by no more than two percentage points, ensuring continuity for CoinGecko users. On CoinGecko, users will continue to see an exchange’s cybersecurity rating alongside key assessment indicators, including whether it has undergone penetration testing, maintains a bug bounty program, and has completed a Proof of Reserves audit.
Users seeking a broader assessment can access CORE3’s full risk breakdown across Security, Solvency, and Transparency. Together, these dimensions inform CORE3’s Probability of Loss (PoL), a forward-looking metric that estimates the likelihood of a loss event arising from factors such as a security breach, insolvency, or operational failure.
Where exchanges stand today
CORE3 analyzed risk data for its set of 193 exchanges as of September 1, 2026, providing a snapshot of the current state of digital asset exchange security:
| Risk Component | Number of Exchanges | % of the Data Set |
| Reserves verified (PoR credited) | 24 | 12.4% |
| Penetration test presented | 53 | 27.5% |
| Bug bounty live | 99 | 51.3% |
| All three | 10 | 5.2% |
| None of the three | 94 | 48.7% |
According to CORE3, ~48% of exchanges from the data set presented no evidence across any of the three assessed components: Proof of Reserves, a vulnerability disclosure or bug bounty program, and penetration testing. The absence of these signals may expose users to greater risk by providing less visibility into an exchange’s reserves and security practices.
As data disclosure is an ongoing process, CORE3 is actively working with a number of exchanges that are submitting reserve, penetration-testing, or bug bounty documentation. The share of exchanges with no verified components is expected to decrease as these submissions are processed.
What changed in CoinGecko’s Cybersecurity Trust Score
CORE3 refined the underlying checks during the migration. Individual exchange cybersecurity scores are expected to change by no more than ±2 percentage points as a result, minimizing disruption for CoinGecko users. Users can also access a broader, multidimensional risk breakdown on CORE3, including the Security, Solvency, and Transparency categories.
Together, these categories inform CORE3’s Probability of Loss (PoL), a forward-looking metric that estimates the likelihood of an exchange or project experiencing a loss event arising from a security breach, insolvency, or operational failure.
“Cybersecurity has been an important component of CoinGecko’s Trust Score for many years, helping users look beyond trading volume when evaluating exchanges. By integrating CORE3, we’re strengthening the cybersecurity assessment behind our Trust Score while giving users access to a more forward-looking view of where exchange risk may be emerging—all without disrupting the scores they already rely on,” said Bobby Ong, CEO and Co-founder of CoinGecko.
“CoinGecko has spent years as the independent aggregator that pushed Web3 toward real transparency and accountability, and that work reshaped how users judge exchanges. CORE3 was built to extend that same standard into risk. There is still a gap between what an exchange discloses and what a user needs to know to judge counterparty risk, and closing it takes more than a cybersecurity score. That’s why we expanded the methodology to weigh Solvency and Transparency as full categories alongside Security. Scored together, they give users the complete risk picture behind every exchange,” said Dyma Budorin, CEO of Hacken.
What this means for exchanges
Increased transparency helps users and other decision-makers assess and manage counterparty risk more effectively, including how exchanges approach cybersecurity, solvency, and disclosure. Exchanges that have not yet submitted reserve data to CORE3 are encouraged to do so on CORE3, as verified reserves provide users with an important signal when assessing counterparty risk and enable qualifying exchanges to receive CORE3’s Solvency seal.
Operational security—including key management and signer infrastructure, which account for a significant portion of losses in the blockchain market today—is already included in the cybersecurity Trust Score through the cryptocurrency cybersecurity standard (CCSS) from the CORE3 security score.
Updated Trust Scores are already available on CoinGecko. Rated entities can review their multidimensional risk breakdown and the criteria behind each category at core3.io.
About CORE3
CORE3 is Hacken’s self-regulatory risk-infrastructure platform that delivers a standardized Probability of Loss (PoL) risk index for 1,427 blockchain assets and 253 digital asset exchanges and is about to present its risk scoring for DeFi protocols, vaults, and other critical components of today’s crypto economy in order to provide a qualitative risk assessment for market participants.
About CoinGecko
Since 2014, CoinGecko has been the world’s largest independent cryptocurrency data aggregator, trusted by millions of users globally. Offering a comprehensive 360-degree view of the market, it provides reliable data for over 19,000 cryptocurrencies across more than 1,400 exchanges. CoinGecko empowers users with the insights they need to navigate the crypto landscape—whether tracking prices, analyzing market trends, or building applications. Learn more about CoinGecko and its API at www.coingecko.com and www.coingecko.com/api.
- The CORE3 integration gives CoinGecko users a broader view of exchange risk by assessing security alongside solvency and transparency. Its forward-looking approach may help identify warning signs before they develop into breaches, insolvencies, or operational failures.
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
