CoinMarketCap

CoinMarketCap-led token airdrops ‘infected by fraud,’ crypto project claims

A crypto project claims a promotional token airdrop campaign led by CoinMarketCap was riddled with “fraud” that left its token price crumbling.

Two crypto projects have cried foul play over promotional airdrops conducted by CoinMarketCap (CMC) on their behalf, which they allege was “gamed” for the benefit of a small group of exploiters.

These promotional airdrops — designed to be distributed to thousands of wallets to raise awareness of a crypto project — ended with the tokens funneling to just a handful of wallets, suggesting potential manipulation of the system.

SATT token drop

Blockchain advertising solution SaTT alleged to Cointelegraph that a promotional airdrop it paid CMC to conduct in Dec. 2022 ended with 84% of the airdropped tokens funneling to just 21 wallets.

The promotion was meant to see 25,000 winning wallets receive 4,000 SATT each, worth $6.30 at the time per CoinGecko data.

However, SaTT claimed that shortly after the airdrop was distributed, 20,953 wallets “automatically transferred the tokens to 21 wallet addresses” which then sold off their token holdings days later around Dec. 10, netting around $142,000 for those 21 wallet owners.

The sell-off plunged the price of SATT by 70% between the end of the airdrop on Dec. 1 to when the wallets sold their tokens on Dec. 10.

*SaTT claims wallet* *0x929…* *(pictured) has over 4,500 transactions of its token, the largest it found out of the 21. Blockchain data shows the wallet sold over 4.3 million tokens through PancakeSwap.* *BscScan*

TokenBot token drop

A similar experience was shared by TokenBot co-founder Shaun Newsum, who told Cointelegraph that it did a similar CMC-led airdrop of its TKB token on Dec. 9.

Newsum said CMC provided its 30,000 airdrop winners but he chose to “stagger” the airdrop “just in case something happens.”

TokenBot sent out its tokens to a batch of 4,000 winners to start, but around 3,300 ended up sending the funds to one wallet, said Newsum.

*Blockchain data shows thousands of TKB transactions flowing to wallet* *0x5AF…* *before initiating a cross-chain swap and then selling its holdings.* *BscScan*.

Newsum said around $20,000 was lost by TokenBot in the incident and the project had to deploy more liquidity from its treasury.

“Obviously some person figured out how to game CMC,” he added. “If we were to have bulk sent, the whole airdrop would’ve been a complete disaster.”

Newsum however said he has since received an apology from CMC and was told that it was investigating the airdrop and would return with an updated winners list for the project.

In its investigation, SaTT claims to have found another 18 tokens or nonfungible tokens (NFTs) airdrops conducted by CMC since Jul. 2022 that were also allegedly “infected by fraud” to the tune of $6.6 million.

This included airdrops for projects including TopGoal, OwlDAO and AgeofGods.

SaTT theorized two possibilities of how the “fraud” occurred:

“Either a group of hackers injected tons of fake accounts [into the airdrop on CMC’s website] […] or it was actually an inside job.”

CoinMarketCap responds

Speaking to Cointelegraph, a CMC spokesperson addressed some of these claims, arguing that at least four of the projects identified by SaTT have yet to distribute rewards, meaning it would be “impossible” for them to have faced “malicious” activity.

It also noted that while three projects, including SaTT, AgeOfGods and TokenBot have spoken to the CMC team about their concerns, it has not received any communications from other projects about the alleged issues.

The spokesperson however acknowledged that “bots are an issue that touches nearly every industry.”

“The industry has been facing this issue among airdrop programs for some time and the reality is that not a single industry has been able to solve the bot issue entirely.”

“We are continuously working to improve our systems and services to limit this issue and will work closely with these projects to find solutions and help resolve any current issues,” the spokesperson added.

CMC added that any claims of bot participation in its airdrops are taken “very seriously” and itis “working on resolving each case individually.”

It also shared several features it has employed to deter bot participation, such as a CAPTCHA challenge and email verification requirements for participants. It’s also developing a two-factor authentication integration.

Cointelegraph contacted TopGoal and OwlDAO for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publicati. AgeofGods could not be reached for comment.

‘Infected by fraud’ — Projects claim CoinMarketCap airdrops were gamed

A crypto project claims a promotional token airdrop campaign led by CoinMarketCap was riddled with “fraud” that left its token price crumbling.

Two crypto projects have cried foul play over promotional airdrops conducted by CoinMarketCap (CMC) on their behalf, which they allege was “gamed” for the benefit of a small group of exploiters.

These promotional airdrops — designed to be distributed to thousands of wallets to raise awareness of a crypto project — ended with the tokens making their way to just a handful of wallets, suggesting potential manipulation of the system.

SATT token drop

Blockchain advertising solution SaTT told Cointelegraph that a promotional airdrop it paid CMC to conduct in December 2022 ended with 84% of the airdropped tokens going to just 21 wallets.

The promotion was supposed to see 25,000 winning wallets receive 4,000 SATT each, worth $6.30 at the time according to CoinGecko data.

However, SaTT claimed that shortly after the airdrop distribution, 20,953 wallets “automatically transferred the tokens to 21 wallet addresses,” which sold off their token holdings days later, netting around $142,000 for those 21 wallet owners.

The sell-off plunged the price of SATT 70% between the end of the airdrop on Dec. 1, to when the wallets sold their tokens on Dec. 10.

TokenBot token drop

TokenBot co-founder Shaun Newsum told Cointelegraph of a similar experience when the company did a CMC-led airdrop of its TKB token on Dec. 9.

Newsum said CMC provided its 30,000 airdrop winners but he chose to “stagger” the airdrop “just in case something happens.”

TokenBot sent out its tokens to a batch of 4,000 winners to start, but around 3,300 ended up sending the funds to one wallet, said Newsum.

Newsum said around $20,000 was lost by TokenBot in the incident, with the project having to deploy more liquidity from its treasury.

“Obviously some person figured out how to game CMC,” he added. “If we were to have bulk sent, the whole airdrop would’ve been a complete disaster.”

Newsum said he has since received an apology from CMC who said it was investigating the airdrop and would return with an updated winners list for the project.

In its investigation, SaTT claims to have found another 18 tokens or nonfungible token (NFT) airdrops conducted by CMC since July 2022 that were also allegedly “infected by fraud” to the tune of $6.6 million.

This included airdrops for projects including TopGoal, OwlDAO and AgeOfGods.

SaTT theorized two possibilities of how the “fraud” occurred:

“Either a group of hackers injected tons of fake accounts [into the airdrop on CMC’s website] […] or it was actually an inside job.”

CoinMarketCap responds

The spokesperson also noted that while three projects, including SaTT, AgeOfGods and TokenBot have spoken to the CMC team about their concerns, it has not received any communications from other projects about the alleged issues.

However, the spokesperson acknowledged that “bots are an issue that touches nearly every industry.”

“The industry has been facing this issue among airdrop programs for some time and the reality is that not a single industry has been able to solve the bot issue entirely.”

They added that any claims of bot participation in its airdrops are taken “very seriously” and it is “working on resolving each case individually.”

They also shared several features employed by CMC to deter bot participation, such as a CAPTCHA challenge and email verification requirements for participants. The company is also developing a two-factor authentication integration.

Cointelegraph contacted TopGoal and OwlDAO for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. AgeOfGods could not be reached for comment.

How to avoid getting hooked by crypto ‘ice phishing’ scammers: CertiK

Ice phishing is a type of scam that exists only in Web3 and is a “considerable threat” to the crypto community, the firm says.

Blockchain security company CertiK has reminded the crypto community to stay alert over “ice phishing” scams — a unique type of phishing scam targeting Web3 users that was first identified by Microsoft earlier this year.

In a Dec. 20 analysis report, CertiK described ice phishing scams as an attack that tricks Web3 users into signing permissions that end up allowing a scammer to spend their tokens.

This differs from traditional phishing attacks that attempt to access confidential information such as private keys or passwords, via methods like the fake websites that claim to help FTX investors recover their lost funds.

#CertiKSkynetAlert

1/ Ice phishing is a considerable threat to the Web3 community

Instead of gaining accessing to your private key, scammers trick you into signing permissions to spend your assets.

We’ll outline below what to look out for, and how to protect yourself!

— CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) December 20, 2022

A Dec. 17 scam where 14 Bored Apes were stolen is an example of an elaborate ice phishing attack. An investor was convinced to sign a transaction request disguised as a film contract, ultimately enabling the scammer to sell all of the user’s Apes to themselves for a negligible amount.

The firm noted that this type of scam was a “considerable threat” and found only in the Web3 world, where investors are often required to sign permissions to decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols that could be easily faked. CertiK wrote:

“The hacker just needs to make a user believe that the malicious address that they are granting approval to is legitimate. Once a user has approved permissions for the scammer to spend tokens, then the assets are at risk of being drained.”

Once a scammer has gained approval, they are able to transfer assets to an address of their choosing.

*An example of how an ice phishing attack works on Etherscan. Source: Certik*

To protect themselves from ice phishing, CertiK recommended that investors use a token approval tool and a blockchain explorer site such as Etherscan to revoke permissions for addresses they don’t recognize.

Additionally, addresses that users are planning to interact with should be looked up on these blockchain explorers for suspicious activity. In its analysis, CertiK points to an address that was funded by Tornado Cash withdrawals as an example of suspicious activity.

CertiK also suggested that users should only interact with official sites they are able to verify and be particularly wary of social media sites like Twitter, highlighting a fake Optimism Twitter account as an example.

*Fake Optimism Twitter account. Source: Certik*

The firm also advised users to take a couple of minutes to check a trusted site such as CoinMarketCap or CoinGecko to be sure that a URL links to a legitimate site.

Tech giant Microsoft was the first one to highlight this practice in a Feb. 16 blog post, saying at the time that while credential phishing is very predominant in the Web2 world, ice phishing gives individual scammers the ability to steal a chunk of the crypto industry while maintaining “almost complete anonymity.”

They recommended that Web3 projects and wallet providers increase their security on the software level in order to prevent the burden of avoiding ice phishing attacks being placed solely on the end-user.

CoinMarketCap launches proof-of-reserve tracker for crypto exchanges

The tool allows users to monitor exchanges’ reserves through displays of total assets and public wallet addresses, along with the balance and value of the wallets displayed.

CoinMarketCap, a leading market researcher and tracker in the crypto industry, announced the launch of a new feature on its platform that gives users updated financial insights on exchanges.

The proof of reserves (PoR) tracker audits active cryptocurrency exchanges in the industry for transparency on liquidity at a given moment. According to the announcement, the tracker details the total assets of the company, and its affiliated public wallet addresses, along with the balances, current price and values of the wallets.

CoinMarketCap reports the PoR trackers will update data every five minutes. On Nov. 22, the company tweeted a guide for users on how to navigate the tool.

NEW #CMC Feature: Exchange’s Proof of Reserves

Proof of Reserves (PoR) provides transparency to #cryptocurrency reserves through a verifiable auditing practice.

pic.twitter.com/HlNbUGzOYE

— CoinMarketCap (@CoinMarketCap) November 22, 2022

In the five-part Twitter thread, Binance was given as an initial example with over $65 billion listed in its combined wallet addresses. Additional exchanges with PoR information available include KuCoin, Bitfinex, OKX, Bybit, Crypto.com and Huobi.

Binance CEO and co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao retweeted the development from CoinMarketCap with a link to Binance’s page. Some in the crypto community on Twitter have called this feature a “great transparency addition.”

CZ was among the first to make a pledge to provide proof of reserves following the ongoing FTX liquidity and bankruptcy crisis.

On Nov. 10, it published a proof of assets, which included wallet addresses and activity. CZ then tweeted that what is available now is only the first iteration of what will be available via Merkle Tree PoR in the near future.

Following Binance’s example, many other platforms in the space began releasing their financial reserve and liquidity information in an effort of transparency. Chainlink Labs, Bitfinex and Bybit were among some of the first to come forward with their own data.

However, the cryptocurrency investment product servicer Grayscale has withheld its on-chain PoR due to what it says are security concerns. It did release a letter from Coinbase Custody that verified that Grayscale’s crypto holdings are fully backed, yet withheld wallet addresses.

Google still promoting crypto phishing sites warns Binance boss

In a tweet this week, CZ warned that when searching for CoinMarketCap on Google, phishing sites with an “ad” tag were showing up in front of the actual website.

Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has warned that Google search results are still promoting crypto phishing and scamming websites.

Despite Google’s strict policies on crypto marketing for its ads service, scammers have still been slipping through the cracks over the past few years. At times, scam websites have even been displayed higher than legitimate crypto and blockchain projects.

In an Oct. 27 tweet, CZ warned that when searching CoinMarketCap on Google, phishing sites with an “ad” tag were showing up in front of the actual website.

“This affects users adding smart contract addresses to MetaMask using these phishing sites. We are trying to contact Google for this, and in the meantime alerting users about this through social channels,” he said.

Google displays phishing sites when users search CMC. This affects users adding smart contract addresses to MetaMask using these phishing sites. We are trying to contact Google for this, and in the meantime alerting users about this through social channels. pic.twitter.com/3q4860Jl4H

— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) October 27, 2022

CoinMarketCap is one of the most commonly used crypto data aggregators on the market, was acquired by Binance for an undisclosed fee back in April 2020. Given its popularity, a lot of traffic could be directed towards these scam ads.

In some cases, phishing websites can be hard to spot, as they generally use copycat URLs to trick people that aren’t paying attention into clicking. For example, one of the websites CZ highlighted was spelled “coinomarketcaap.”

In April this year, blockchain security firm SlowMist uncovered a Terra (LUNC) related phishing scam in which bad actors were using Google Ads to run copycat websites utilizing Achor Protocol and Astroport branding.

According to SlowMist, the promoted websites ranked ahead of the actual sites people were searching for and went on to swipe around $4.31 million worth of LUNC from 52 addresses between April 12. And April 21.

In November 2021, the research arm of cybersecurity firm CheckPoint also published a report warning that around $500,000 was stolen by scammers who used Google Ads to promote phishing sites that mimicked crypto wallet providers MetaMask and Phantom.

Google’s ads service has been a topic of keen interest this week after parent company Alphabet firm highlighted in its Q3 earnings call that spending on search advertising from financial and crypto firms was down quarter over quarter.

“We did see a pullback in spending by some advertisers in certain areas in search ads. For example, in financial services, we saw a pullback in insurance, loan, mortgage, and crypto subcategories,” said Philipp Schindler, chief business officer of Google. The firm appears to have no qualms about accepting ad payments from scammers, however.

Google still promoting crypto phishing sites, warns Binance boss

In a tweet this week, CZ warned that when searching for CoinMarketCap on Google, phishing sites with an “ad” tag were showing up in front of the actual website.

Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has warned that Google Search results are still promoting crypto phishing and scamming websites.

In an Oct. 27 tweet, CZ warned that when searching CoinMarketCap on Google, phishing sites with an “ad” tag were showing up in front of the actual website.

Google displays phishing sites when users search CMC. This affects users adding smart contract addresses to MetaMask using these phishing sites. We are trying to contact Google for this, and in the meantime alerting users about this through social channels. pic.twitter.com/3q4860Jl4H

— CZ Binance (@cz_binance) October 27, 2022

CoinMarketCap is one of the most commonly used crypto data aggregators on the market and was acquired by Binance for an undisclosed fee back in April 2020. Given its popularity, a lot of traffic could be directed toward these scam ads.

In April this year, blockchain security firm SlowMist uncovered a Terra-related phishing scam in which bad actors were using Google Ads to run copycat websites utilizing Achor Protocol and Astroport branding.

According to SlowMist, the promoted websites ranked ahead of the actual sites people were searching for and went on to swipe around $4.31 million worth of Luna Classic (LUNC) from 52 addresses between April 12 and April 21.

CoinGecko open to acquisition but now is ‘too early,’ co-founder says

While CoinMarketCap was acquired by Binance during post-2017 crypto winter, the current bear market is not the right time to sell CoinGecko, its COO said.

Major cryptocurrency tracking website CoinGecko is open to acquisitions, but not right now, according to a co-founder of the platform.

CoinGecko has been hit by the current crypto bear market, but the firm is far from selling off, CoinGecko chief operating officer Bobby Ong told Cointelegraph.

Ong believes that all crypto-related companies are affected by the cyclical nature of the industry as they usually do well during bull runs and struggle during bear markets.

“During this crypto winter, we at CoinGecko are similarly impacted. This will be our third crypto winter and we are focused on improving CoinGecko to prepare for the eventual bull run that will come again,” Ong said.

According to the chief operating officer, CoinGecko had 100 million monthly pageviews in July, experiencing an 85% decrease in traffic compared to the peak in November 2021. The traffic decline comes in line with the price movement of Bitcoin (BTC), which reached an all-time high above $68,000 last November.

“This has definitely impacted revenue, as advertising is one of our major revenue drivers and is a function of pageviews received,” Ong noted. He also said that new token listings on CoinGecko dropped about 70% from last year.

Despite shrinking revenues and the ongoing uncertainty around the crypto market, CoinGecko is still holding strong in terms of its headcount. The firm nearly doubled its staff over the past seven months from 30 to 57 team members and has not laid off any employees. CoinGecko hasn’t instituted any hiring freeze as well, Ong said.

“In fact, we just paid out a small bonus to all team members for the first half of 2022 despite the bear market. We are also in the process of reviewing our salaries to make it more competitive to hire and retain the best talents,” Ong stated, noting that CoinGecko has a few remaining open roles for the rest of the year.

CoinGecko is the biggest rival of CoinMarketCap, the crypto price-tracking website that was bought by Binance in April 2020. The acquisition came during the post-2017 crypto winter, with Bitcoin trading between $7,000-8,000 during the month of acquisition. Binance has never officially announced the cost of the deal, while it was rumored to cost the firm $400 million.

*Bitcoin price chart from May 2017 to April 2020. Source: CoinGecko*

Following CoinMarketCap’s acquisition, Ong said that the firm was approached multiple times by exchanges, venture capitalists and angel investors, but CoinGecko opted to prioritize independence and stay neutral. The company’s views have somewhat changed since, as CoinGecko considers it might sell the platform one day, Ong said, stating:

“At some point in the future, we will be open to selling the firm but right now, it is too early to sell. The crypto industry is still in its first inning and there will be high growth in the coming years.”

Ong once again predicted that “anything that can be tokenized will be tokenized in the future,” which would require a reliable source to track all those tokens.

“CoinGecko aims to empower the decentralized future by being the foundational infrastructure to help people get the information they need on the millions of tokens that will be listed in the future,” the chief noted.

He also emphasized that the bear market is the best time to focus on building great products as there is “significantly less noise and distraction from short-term trends.”