This week, government agencies intensified their enforcement actions against fraudulent crypto activities, responding to a rise in hacking incidents, scams, and fraud.
One notable case involved the hacking of CoinsPaid. Alongside these developments, regulatory initiatives remained in focus, with the passage of a pro-crypto bill in the US Congress garnering attention.
Crypto institutional adoption continued to show steady momentum. However, the launch of Worldcoin prompted discussions around privacy.
Crypto hacks, scams, and fraudulent schemes
Blockchain security firm PeckShield reported on July 24 that the launch of Worldcoin, the cryptocurrency backed by OpenAI’s CEO, was affected by the deployment of fake tokens on Ethereum.
Two fake Worldcoin tokens were detected, and one displayed a suspicious 100% price drop, raising concerns about a potential rug pull scam.
Additionally, after Twitter changed its iconic bluebird emblem to an “X” symbol, numerous “X” coins were launched on various decentralized exchanges (DEXs).
While some of these coins experienced significant growth, with one surging by 1,200% in a single day, many were not proven fraudulent.
Nevertheless, this situation underscores the risks of bad actors capitalizing on trending themes to lure unsuspecting investors. As such, caution is strongly advised when dealing with such tokens.
Millions lost by CoinsPaid and Era Lend
CoinsPaid, a crypto payment provider based in Estonia, was hacked, reportedly by Lazarus Group, on July 22, resulting in a loss of $37.3 million.
The company has fortified its systems to prevent further damage and is currently investigating the extent of the hack.
On July 25, Era Lend suffered a significant exploit resulting in estimated losses of $3.4 million, raising concerns about the security of decentralized finance platforms.
CertiK issued an urgent Skynet Alert following the attack.