Coinbase’s Base Chain Targeted by Scammers: 145% Increase in April

Coinbase’s Base chain has become a prime target for scammers, with two of the top 10 largest single thefts taking place on the network, amounting to over 20% of the total thefts for the month. While overall crypto hacks decreased in April, certain networks are seeing a rise in scam activity as scammers find new ways to entice victims onto different platforms. According to data from Scam Sniffer, Coinbase’s Base network, which is built on top of the Ethereum blockchain, experienced a significant 145% increase in scam activity in April.

Despite the decrease in crypto attacks overall, theft on the Base chain spiked by 145% from the previous month. Notably, 2 of the top 10 largest single thefts occurred on this chain, making up 21% of the total theft for the month. According to Scam Sniffer, the Base network saw a nearly 1,900% surge in scammer activity since January, resulting in approximately $170,000 stolen due to phishing scams. In April, almost 90% of the stolen assets were ERC-20 tokens, which are the standard tokens on the Ethereum network. Common phishing signatures such as Permit, IncreaseAllowance, and Uniswap Permit2 were responsible for significant losses, as reported by Scam Sniffer.

Despite the decline in crypto attacks in April, which marked the first significant decrease in 2024, some notable incidents still took place. The largest hack involved Hedgey Finance, a token infrastructure platform, losing around $47 million worth of crypto. The second-largest hack targeted the Fix Float exchange, resulting in the theft of $3 million worth of crypto due to a vulnerability in a third-party service provider. The third-largest attack on Grand Base saw hackers walk away with $2.67 million.

In total, more than $401 million was stolen due to hacks and rug pulls since the beginning of the year, marking a 25.1% decrease compared to the same period last year when over $536 million worth of hacks occurred, according to Immunefi. This data highlights the ongoing challenges and risks associated with the cryptocurrency space, emphasizing the importance of staying vigilant and informed when engaging in crypto transactions.