In the world of cryptocurrencies, the sudden vanishing of tokens from investors’ wallets has become a cause for concern. To safeguard their assets, it’s crucial for investors to be aware of the tactics employed by malicious actors in the crypto realm.
Bitrace, the blockchain investigator, has pinpointed three effective methods that hackers employ to infiltrate crypto investors’ wallets: search engine exploitation, pasteboard hijacking, and the nefarious world of liquidity mining and coin theft.
When crypto enthusiasts find themselves exclaiming, “My coins disappeared suddenly,” it’s often linked to downloading crypto applications from unverified sources. Hackers utilize Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques to manipulate search engine rankings, unwittingly luring users into downloading and registering for counterfeit apps embedded with backdoors.
Pasteboard hijacking is another devious practice, involving the automatic seizure or modification of previously copied clipboard text data. This technique frequently targets users’ seed phrases, granting access to wallets and enabling the siphoning of funds. Bitrace shed light on a fraudulent Telegram app that swaps out the destination wallet address copied in the clipboard, leading users to send their tokens directly into the hacker’s clutches.
In the world of scams, the age-old “high yield and low risk” liquidity schemes rank among the top three contributors to token disappearances. Bitrace suggests three techniques for crypto users to trace stolen funds. The process commences with tracking the transaction fees, as investigators often uncover the hacker’s address by tracing the origins of the fees paid for moving stolen assets.
Investors can also enhance their chances of reclaiming stolen funds by utilizing blockchain explorers and professional tools. For a more in-depth exploration of tracking stolen crypto, be sure to delve into Cointelegraph Research’s article on how blockchain analysis aids in fund recovery.
Furthermore, beyond individual investors, crypto organizations often fall prey to attackers. In response to a recent exploit, the Maestrobots, a group of cryptocurrency bots on the Telegram messenger app, stepped up to the plate by allocating a total of 610 Ether (ETHUSD) from their own revenue, covering user losses exceeding $1 million.
CertiK, a blockchain security firm, verified these transactions to Cointelegraph, highlighting the 334 ETH compensation distributed to users by Maestro. A spokesperson for Maestrobots explained that most of the tokens surged in value due to the anticipation of a market buyback. As a result, a significant portion of these tokens remains in circulation.