Crypto Whale: $32 Million Loss Due to Phishing Attack

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by Giorgi Kostiuk

2 years ago

A prominent participant in the crypto market lost over $32 million due to a phishing attack targeting their wallet through the decentralized finance platform Spark.

The Theft Incident

According to blockchain security service ScamSniffer, the incident occurred after the victim signed a malicious transaction. As a result, 12.083 wrapped ether (spWETH) tokens valued at approximately $32.4 million were stolen. The attack was linked to a fraud operation called Inferno Drainer, which has executed widespread assaults on cryptocurrency users across multiple decentralized networks.

The Inferno Drainer Scam

Arkham Intelligence identified the wallet as potentially belonging to Shixing Mao, also known as Discus Fish, one of the co-founders of F2Pool and Cobo. However, Arkham's AI-based identification of the wallet owner has a low confidence level. Despite such a loss, Arkham data reveals that the wallet still contains cryptocurrencies valued at approximately $5.44 million. The Inferno Drainer scam takes a 20% commission on stolen funds. In November 2023, developers closed the service but relaunched it in May 2024 with new employees and enhanced functions, making the scam more dangerous than before. Crypto sleuth ZachXBT pointed out that the wallet owner had been involved in large transactions with another popular account known as 'czsamsun'.

Surging Phishing Schemes in Crypto Space

This event has triggered alarms in the DeFi community and urged users to be cautious with unfamiliar transactions. Blockchain analytics firm LookOnChain issued a warning about phishing attacks and recommendations on how to avoid being targeted. According to ScamSniffer, cryptocurrency losses from phishing scams reached $173 million in Q1 2024. The FBI also highlighted the rising threat, revealing that phishing losses exceeded $9.6 million in 2023.

Phishing schemes continue to pose a significant threat to participants in the cryptocurrency market. Users need to exercise extreme caution and avoid signing unfamiliar transactions to protect their assets.

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