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A cryptocurrency trader experienced a loss exceeding $1.28 million in digital assets on October 14 after approving a fraudulent transaction linked to a phishing scheme from late September.
As reported by blockchain intelligence company Arkham, the incident was likely executed using Inferno Drainer. This phishing-as-a-service toolkit has been implicated in the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars.
Phishing Attack Associated with Inferno Drainer Scam Service: How Did the Victim Lose $1.28M?
The trader’s wallet, recognized as “0xb0b..40c7,” was emptied of 108 billion PEPE, 73.8 million APU, and 165,000 MSTR tokens after being deceived into signing a phishing permit transaction.
#PeckShieldAlert The address 0xb0b8…40c7 has been drained of ~$1.28M worth of cryptos, including 108B $PEPE, 73.8M $APU, and 165K $MSTR, after signing a #phishing permit signature.
The #phishing address #Fake_Phishing442846 is linked to the scammers who drained $32M worth of… pic.twitter.com/fq3a4DD0tD— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) October 14, 2024
The technique employed in the attack is referred to as an “approval phishing attack,” which enables fraudsters to seize control of a victim’s wallet and transfer funds.
In this instance, the misappropriated assets were transferred through six transactions and dispersed to various addresses managed by the perpetrators.
#PeckShieldAlert The address 0xb0b8…40c7 has been drained of ~$1.28M worth of cryptos, including 108B $PEPE, 73.8M $APU, and 165K $MSTR, after signing a #phishing permit signature.
The #phishing address #Fake_Phishing442846 is linked to the scammers who drained $32M worth of… pic.twitter.com/fq3a4DD0tD— PeckShieldAlert (@PeckShieldAlert) October 14, 2024
One of the wallets involved, “Fake_Phishing442846,” was connected to another phishing incident just two weeks prior, which resulted in the theft of over $32 million in spWETH tokens.
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The phishing toolkit allows criminals to fabricate counterfeit websites and applications, deceiving users into relinquishing control of their wallets.
Inferno Drainer functions on a subscription basis, charging scammers 30% for the creation of phishing sites and an additional 20% for each successful attack. Data from Dune analytics indicates that the toolkit has enabled the theft of over $237 million from more than 200,000 victims thus far.
Although the developers announced intentions to discontinue Inferno Drainer in November 2023, the toolkit reemerged in May 2024, spurred by renewed interest from fraudsters.
Over $127 Million in Cryptocurrency Stolen in Q3 2024
Phishing attacks represent a significant risk to cryptocurrency investors, with a Chainalysis report estimating losses of $2.7 billion since 2021.
A recent notable case involved a venture capital fund losing $35 million in fwDETH tokens, resulting in a 90% decline in the token’s value.
In Q3 2024 alone, over $127 million in cryptocurrencies were stolen, with approximately $46 million lost in September. Web3 security firm Scam Sniffer reported that around 10,800 victims were impacted by phishing attacks that month.
The largest incident took place on September 28, when a permit phishing attack siphoned off 12,083 spWETH, valued at $32.43 million. The main targets included Ether and other cryptocurrencies such as Polygon (MATIC), BNB, and Optimism (OP).
Most phishing incidents arise from malicious links on social media and phishing advertisements on Google.
The post Inferno Drainer Claims Another Victim: $1.28M Lost in PEPE and Altcoins appeared first on Cryptonews.
