Scam: They offer free cryptocurrencies and steal almost a million dollars in funds

Several users reported a scam that seeks to steal funds under the false offer of ApeCoin. This is a hoax that was launched through profiles of Twitter that appear as verified and offer to send this cryptocurrency within the framework of an AirDrop, a procedure within the crypto world that consists of giving away coins or tokens to wallet addresses to promote the launch of a new virtual currency. Although this is a common technique in the world of cryptocurrencies, in this case everything was used as a hook to orchestrate a scam, which would have already caused more than a million dollars in losses.ApeCoin is a new token of ethereum based on the popular project NFT Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC). It is believed that in the near future this cryptocurrency could become a payment method within the metaverse, the new evolution of the internet that will inhabit web 3, based on blockchain technology.Cyber attackers hacked into a number of verified accounts on Twitter, many with images of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) on the profile. This worked as a hook for users interested in these tokens to believe that it was a genuine proposal, when it is not.The message that was seen circulating in the hacked Twitter accounts reads as follows: “The launch of Ape Coin has been a great success! We have collectively decided to send a little more to active NFT Traders/Holders. If you don't currently own NFTs, you can claim with a fee of 0.33 ETH!”Below is a link to a malicious site that was used to steal digital wallets. There are already several affected users. Among them is NFT collector Bored Alien Silver Ape who claims to have lost over half a million dollars worth of BAYC NFTs. He fell for a verified account posing as a founder of that NFT collection.For its part, from the AnChain.AI account a thread was published showing other compromised accounts that were used for the attack: they are the profiles of the musician Mila, the journalist Gavin Quinn and Dana.eth, who also identified himself as the founder of BAYC.“A phishing attack involving hacked verified Twitter accounts went live earlier this week., alerted from the aforementioned account. The profiles that were identified as a vehicle to carry out this scam have already returned to the hands of their original users, but apparently the hackers have already managed to seize more than a million dollars in cryptocurrencies, according to the specialized site. Decrypt.How cyber attackers seized the opportunity to pull off this hoaxThe launch of ApeCoin was announced just a week ago and it was reported that 15% of this coin (which has a total supply of one billion units) would be airdropped to NFT Ape holders; either Bored Apes or Mutant Apes.The airdrop is a method used by the creators of certain cryptocurrencies to reach a massive number of users, since there are millions of investors waiting to be able to participate in an airdrop to get free cryptos. This makes it possible for the project to gain fame in a short time, just by giving away a few tokens. This process is usually part of an initial coin offering (ICO) or the founding moments of each new crypto. The problem was that in the mentioned case this advertisement was used by the creators of ApeCoin to scam many users.Is that taking advantage of the interest generated by the news of the creation of the new token, some cybercriminals hacked verified Twitter accounts and created fake websites to steal funds.. So it was that they began to circulate messages like the ones mentioned above, where these free coins were offered and users were asked to enter a link to be able to get hold of them. It was all a hoax.As mentioned on other occasions, you must always be alert to messages that offer offers or gifts that circulate on the networks. Although in this case it is true that the creators of the crypto had actually offered the possibility of accessing the first ones at no cost, through the procedure known as AirDrop, in this case that was used as a deception. So, what to do? Always verify on official sites or accounts, get information on specialized sites and always secure all accounts with a second authentication factor to reduce the chances of losing valuable funds.:

David

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