How Hacking and Scamming Happened in Crypto This Week
Cryptocurrency markets are still at risk from hacking, fraud and massive losses. Hacking reports this week show that many platforms have security vulnerabilities. These problems raise concerns about regulations and safety in the industry.
Dexx Hack affects over 8,620 Solana Wallets
DEXX, a trading platform aimed at trading meme coins, was hacked on November 16. The attack was the result of a private key breach that led to the theft of 8,620 Solana wallets and more than $30M. In the same situation, at least 900 users were affected, of which one person lost more than one million dollars.
However, the platform has engaged in mitigation measures such as; Tracking the hacker's wallets and negotiating to return the money, but the result is often unknown.
Pump Science Wallet Hack: Developer Negligence Sparks Token Cheat
Pump Science, a Solana-based decentralized science (DeSci) platform, shared news of the breach, which one of its developers attributed to negligence. The attacker used a generated private key to voluntarily enter fake URO and RIF tokens into the system. Fake tokens are spread in the market and destroy the reputation and trust of the project.
Pump Science has stated that any token produced by the said wallet after the deal is fake. The group has warned users to stay away from fake accounts while trying to control the losses so far.
MrBeast is accused of Crypto Manipulation and Insider Trading
Popular YouTuber MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) abused his 31.2m subscribers by using forums to promote pump and dump schemes. Researchers say he used them to control the prices of the tokens, buying their value and making a profit of $23 million.
Key projects related to these allegations include: $SUPER: $11.45M, $ERN: $4.65M, $PMON: $1.72M, $STAK: $1.31M and $AIOZ: $1M.
This has again made many people think about the ethical practices in crypto trading.
Crypto losses in November: $71M to def
Analyzed by ImmuneFi, 26 cases of hacking and fraud caused $71 million in losses in November. This is a 79 percent decrease from the $343 million recorded in November 2023, when the bill was withdrawn. However, challenges continue, especially for DeFi platforms, with 100% risks and losses, $70.99M from 24 hacks and $25,300 from 2 carpet pulls.
Major events included: Thala Labs: $25.5M and DEXX: $21M
The BNB chain was the most attacked blockchain with 14 attacks and a total loss of 46.7%. Ethereum suffered a loss of 30%.
Summary: Creating a Safe Crypto Space
This week's events highlight the need to keep an eye on the security breaches and other malpractices occurring in the crypto industry. Although the overall loss rate is down compared to last year, cases like DEXX and Pump Science clearly show the importance of hard technical safety measures.
Similarly, the MrBeast case suggests the FCA should pay more attention to financial promotions for influencers.
Looking ahead to the last quarter of 2024, the key to change and grow the crypto community is trust, transparency and security to make the ecosystem stronger in 2025.
