2022 has been quite a year for crypto (especially Ethereum) and web3 security, despite the crypto winter that continues to ravage the long-term prices of most of the crypto market’s assets.
This year alone, over 2.5 billion dollars have been stolen through hacks and exploits on several blockchains and the individuals who use them. Some blockchains exploited this year include Solana, Polygon, and the smart-contract-enabled Binance blockchain, BSC.
The Ethereum network is one of the most secure blockchains in the world and is very difficult to attack. However, it is still possible to attack and exploit the people who use it.
This is exactly what an infamous hacker named “Monkey Drainer” did.
According to the on-chain investigator (detective) “ZachXBT” in a Twitter thread, Monkey Drainer stole 700 Ethereum tokens worth over a million dollars in the last 24 hours via phishing scams.
1/ Over the past 24 hrs ~700 ETH ($1m) has been stolen by the phishing scammer known as Monkey Drainer.
They recently surpassed 7300 transactions from their drainer wallet after being around for only a few months. pic.twitter.com/6vAYBiqCxQ
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) October 25, 2022
How Did Monkey Drainer Carry Out the Heist?
Phishing scams are relatively simple and have proved to be one of the most effective ways scammers steal the funds of the unsuspecting.
In a phishing scam, the hacker creates a fake website that closely resembles that of a legit crypto business.
When the hacker’s unsuspecting victims visit these websites, they are prompted to enter sensitive crypto information under the impression that they are paying for some legitimate service or asset.
The wallet login credentials and keys collected from the victims are then used to gain access to and completely drain their wallets.
According to ZachXBT, Monkey Drainer’s scam wallet has been used for a while and has completed over 7,300 transactions over a few months.
About 35% of the recently stolen 1 million dollars belonged to two victims.
The larger of the two main victims, according to ZachXBT, had about $6.2 million worth of cryptocurrency in their wallet. However, they only lost the $200,000 on top because all the other transaction requests were rejected.
From the second victim, the Monkey Drainer stole NFTs (One Clone X and One Bored Ape Yacht Club) and about $36,000 worth of USDC with a collective value of about $150,000.
Over the last 7 days, Monkey Drainer has managed to steal about $3.5 million worth of cryptocurrencies and NFTs.
Ethereum Price Reaction
Ethereum is still at a 7-day high after its price explosion this week. On Tuesday, the crypto started to rise above its $1,350 range and has been at a high ever since.
After breaking the $1,400 zone (red line), Ethereum retraced for a while and continued toward the $1,500 zone (blue line).
The cryptocurrency is currently in consolidation after breaking the $1,500 zone. It may either continue to rise or break the trendline downwards, depending on whether the bulls can sustain their momentum.
Ethereum appears to be far above its 200-period moving average. It is currently at its deciding moment and may trend upwards to the bullish price target of around $1,788 ($1,800), depending on whether the bulls can continue to push up against the bears.
Suppose the bears manage to cause a breakdown of the $1,500 support after this consolidation. In that case, the price of Ethereum may trend downwards for a retest of its 200-period moving average (cyan) around the $1,380 line, as illustrated above.
The RSI on the 4-hour chart currently shows overbought conditions and may indicate a possible correction to the $1,460 zone before any kind of bullish momentum continues.
However, if the price of the cryptocurrency does correct to $1,460 and the bulls manage to step up, Ethereum may finally rise to $1,800, a high it sat at before the post-merge dip.
Disclaimer: Voice of crypto aims to deliver accurate and up-to-date information, but it will not be responsible for any missing facts or inaccurate information. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile financial assets, so research and make your own financial decisions.
