30s Summary

Cryptocurrency scams like Inferno and Pink, which reportedly stole millions from users by tricking them into authorising fund-transfer transactions, have shut down recently due to increased risk of getting caught by law enforcement and cybersecurity teams. A growing trend of these ‘scam-as-a-service’ models is resulting in more victims and losses, despite initiatives from big cryptocurrency players like Tether to freeze ill-intentioned wallets. Some notably threatening scams, including Monkey Drainer and a new sham called Angel Drainer, have also surfaced, perpetuating the continuation of this security concern within the cryptocurrency arena.

Full Article

Hot cryptocurrency scams like Inferno and Pink announced their shutdowns this year, but users are still falling prey and losing a lot of money. These scams trick users into connecting their wallet and approving transactions that rob them of all their funds. In October, more than $20 million was lost to these types of tricks. Even though this was down 56% from September, the number of victims actually increased by 20%.

Alex Katz, the guy who heads the web security tool Kerberus, told Cointelegraph that the number of victims is skyrocketing and that’s concerning. On the bright side, cops and cybersecurity teams have been getting better at catching these crooks. Cos, who founded a company called MistTrack, says this is probably why scammers are shutting down their operations – they’re afraid they might get caught.

Speaking of which, Tether, which is a big player in the cryptocurrency world, recently froze three wallets that were tied to these scams. According to a private sleuth that Cointelegraph spoke to, the wallets were frozen by a law enforcement agency. This detective has been helping authorities to track down a shady character known as Konpyl who’s suspected of draining about $1.6 million from victims via a bogus Rabby wallet scam.

Crypto scams generally work by exploiting weaknesses in smart contracts, phishing attacks, or through manipulative tactics to access wallets. They’re created by developers who sell them to wrongdoers who use them to steal money in exchange for a fee. This is what’s known as the “scam-as-a-service” model. Alex from Kerberus notes that these scams are like businesses that take a commission for every transaction.

These scams, like Inferno, Pink and Monkey Drainer have become very popular and they’ve even branded themselves. Interestingly though, all of them have announced shutdowns, with Inferno being the latest to close shop. Inferno claimed that its services have been taken over by a new scam called Angel Drainer.

If you’ve been following the story, you’ll recall Monkey Drainer was one of the first to use this scam-as-a-service model. They shut down back in March 2023, then newbies like Inferno and Pink popped up. Pink Drainer was apparently developed by an ex-security expert who turned rogue. Pink Drainer called it quits in May 2024, after robbing more than 21,000 victims of about $85 million. Inferno was inactive for a while after announcing its retirement in November 2023, but popped back up when Pink left the scene.

This is a wild, wild world and the story continues to unfold with new turns and twists. Stay tuned to stay safe!