A cyberthief’s goal is to steal every digital or physical item he can get his hands on. They might, for example, steal money, chat messages, or other personal information.
Despite the fact that the NFT market is still in its infancy, it has already attracted fraudsters and hackers because of its quick expansion and popularity.
Many have compared the NFT area to the Wild West since it is still in its experimental stages. You can’t report losses to “the authorities” since there’s no overall customer service. Nonetheless, in 2021, the space industry made billions of dollars. That’s why it’s an ideal breeding place for con artists.
The most commonly targeted NFTs are so-called “blue chip” NFTs, such as Bored Ape Yacht Club, which presently has a floor price of 96 ETH. With just one click, a scammer could make hundreds of thousands of dollars. It’s alarmingly easy for anonymous fraudsters to infiltrate chats and influence holders in a location founded on a strong feeling of camaraderie and happiness. All it really takes is one momentary lapse in judgment.
The blockchain and NFTs provide autonomy, but it also means we’re responsible for our assets — no bank is watching over them for you. Understanding different types of scams will help keep your NFTs safe.
Types of scams
Many OpenSea sites appear during highly anticipated NFT dumps, making it difficult to determine which is the actual collection, especially if the collection isn’t confirmed. With FOMO brewing and the clock ticking, many collectors skip the extra step of validating where the assets are minting, resulting in the minting of the incorrect NFT.
The fraudulent collection, as well as that of NFT, is quickly withdrawn from OpenSea, but the scammers still have the buyer’s money. This happened recently with Punks Comic, when many people were duped into minting from a bogus OpenSea page, resulting in hundreds of dollars being lost.
Actions to take
- Never click on links that you can’t verify.
- Check the domain URL again — a fake website may frequently be identified by a single difference in character.
- Go to the official collection’s Twitter or Discord first to make sure you’re minting the verified link.
Because NFTs live on the blockchain, your wallet address, as well as your every move, is visible to everyone. This implies that anybody may access your account and send NFTs to your wallet without your permission, similar to an airdrop.
Scammers frequently send NFTs to your wallet in order to get you to connect with them and gain your personal information, so don’t interact with any new NFTs until you’ve confirmed their origin.
Impersonation is one of the most dangerous scams, and it can take many forms.
A Twitter account with my profile photo, a copy of my bio, and 5,000 followers was just brought to my attention, and it had my profile picture, a copy of my bio, and had written several similar tweets to my own. The only difference between my account and the fraudulent one was that the fake one’s username was NFTs1nsight rather than NFT1nsight. Someone who hadn’t seen my genuine account may easily have been duped by that account.
I have no idea how the account was utilised or if it was used to send DMs to possible scam victims, but I can only presume it was made with malice in mind. Scams like these are becoming more widespread, with some bogus accounts amassing thousands of dollars.
Actions to take
- A large number of followers does not guarantee that an account is genuine.
- Always double-check Twitter usernames and account followers.
- Report it to Twitter if you find out it’s a bogus account.
- There are also brand impersonations, in which scammers construct a profile to offer assistance to hacking victims, usually on Discord or Twitter.
Scammers will send bogus OpenSea offers to people’s inboxes, requesting that they click the “view” button. Those URLs usually lead to a phoney page that requests your wallet and seed phrase. (Never send your seed phrase to anybody.) Scams of this nature abound on Discord. Once a fraudster obtains your information, they’ll move all of your assets to another wallet and sell them — and there’s nothing you can do to stop them. You’ll be in a race against the clock to save as many NFTs as possible.
Many fraudsters may offer NFTs at a low price merely to get rid of them, and suspicious consumers may blindly grab them without asking how the vendor got them. Community initiatives can sometimes help counter this, but not always.
“Everyone’s safety should be a major priority. I’ll go through some of the finest techniques to maintain security and secure your digital asset in order to throw some light on the subject.”
The following suggestions can assist you in lowering your chance of getting hacked:
- Never tell anyone your word seed phrase.
- A combination of letters, numbers, and symbols should be used in passwords.
- Passwords and seed phrases should not be saved on your PC.
- A VPN can improve your security by masking your IP address and encrypting your internet activity.
Maintain the security of your wallet at all times. In the same way that a cryptocurrency wallet is used to store and use bitcoin, an NFT wallet is used to store and use NFTs. Because some wallets are more safe than others, it is critical that you select a trustworthy and secure wallet.
Two-factor authentication should be enabled.
Produce strong passwords, activate two-factor authentication, encrypt your data, and ask the user to create a recovery key to ensure that your money is safe.
Double-check that two-factor authentication is turned on. When it comes to your NFT wallet, two-factor authentication may be really useful. If the NFT is not needed to be validated before actions may be taken, it can be stolen or sent to the wrong person by accident.
Use a non-custodial wallet to keep your money safe.
Avoiding exchanges and markets, a non-custodial crypto wallet is the best location to hold your NFTs. Touch identification and passwords, as well as a 12- to 24-word seed phrase, are used by most non-custodial wallets.
For the vast majority of persons and circumstances, this approach of asset protection is quite secure. However, they may be hacked using a variety of techniques, including keyloggers and viruses.
Keep a frequent backup of your wallet.
If you use this approach, you will be able to simply recover your data in the case of a system crash or device loss. Always make numerous backups and store them on three or five different drives at the same time, with one or more of the drives being external hard drives that do not require an Internet connection. This is the safest method of implementing NFTs.
Make sure you keep up with software updates on a regular basis.
There are many other sorts of software updates, but security patches are the most popular. Be it a point to check for updates at least every couple of days or activate automatic updates for these and other apps if you want to make sure you have the most recent version of your wallet, antivirus software, operating system, or email client.
Best security techniques
- Here are some other strategies to protect your assets:
- Before clicking on any links, be sure they’ve been verified — never click on random or broken links received from unknown sources.
- Never, ever, ever share your screen.
- Check the contract address, which should show where the NFT was minted, before minting anything. It should be genuine if it has been validated on OpenSea. If something appears to be too good to be true, it most likely is.
- Never give out your recovery phrase to anyone.
- Store your seed phrase offline (“cold storage”), with numerous copies in secure places, away from your phone and computer.
- Always double-check that you’re minting on a trusted website.
- Due to bots and fraudsters, many people find it easier and safer to switch off Discord DMs entirely.
- It’s a good idea to bookmark trusted websites like OpenSea so you don’t end up on a phony page.
- You will never be sent a DM first if you need help; instead, go to official sites for help, not social media.
- Ask trustworthy friends questions, seek answers from official teams, and don’t be scared to raise concerns about your safety and security.
- Add an extra layer of protection by using two-factor authentication.
- Use strong and unusual passwords — best it’s to start a new account with a different password each time.
- Use a hardware wallet like a Ledger or Trezor — these cold wallets remain offline, so only you and your private key have access to them.
- DYOR. Before you do anything in the NFT realm, make sure you do your homework on the collection, the seller, the contract, and the legalities.
Always remain vigilant in the NFT space. One brief lapse in judgment can mean the difference between a full wallet and an empty wallet.
Curious to learn more? Follow for more.
Do visit our website and check out our revolutionary services & solutions.
For Quick Contact :
Mail : business@clarisco.com
Contact No : +91 99945 17286
