The Open Network (TON) ecosystem has seen an alarming rise in phishing attacks. SlowMist founder Yu Xian says the Telegram-linked blockchain is “too free.”
In a June 24 X post, Xian warned that scammers have increasingly targeted TON users.
Telegram groups promote phishing links
According to Xian, the vulnerabilities are linked to scammers easily accessing message groups. As a result, it becomes easier for them to spread phishing links and scam bots.
The scammers usually employ deceptive tactics like bogus airdrops to trick unsuspecting victims. Once a victim clicks these links or interacts with the bots, their TON wallets are compromised.
Further, the blockchain security expert underlined that users with anonymous TON wallet accounts face more risks. That’s because these accounts are not linked to SIM cards.
Anonymous accounts were introduced by Telegram in 2022. This allowed users to access the messaging platform and its features without a SIM card.
The workaround uses blockchain-based anonymous numbers generated on platforms like Fragment.
If such accounts are compromised, it could also lead to the user losing the corresponding Telegram account, Xiam noted.
However, the expert noted that this could be avoided if additional security measures are implemented. These include enabling an independent password or two-factor authentication.
TON ecosystem sees massive growth
The warning comes as the TON ecosystem has seen massive growth. Recent reports revealed that the network’s daily active addresses have surpassed that of Ethereum in June.
The heightened activity has been attributed to the network’s recent integration of USDT. With this integration, Binance users are able to easily move stablecoin liquidity onto the TON blockchain.
Further, clicker games and tokens like Notcoin have also drawn in a huge chunk of users towards the TON blockchain. At the time of publication, the play-to-earn game managed to rake in 11.5 million holders.
Another game, Hamster Kombat, drew in over 150 million users within months after its launch.
At the time of writing, the TON ecosystem boasts 43 tokens with a total market capitalization of $19.2 billion. Meanwhile, the total value locked (TVL) on various TON projects stands at $648 million.
However, the rapid growth has been followed by a rise in attacks targeting Telegram users.
According to data from on-chain monitoring platform Dilation Effect, scammers have been targeting crypto exchanges by spamming fake USDT transactions on the TON network.
Meanwhile, a report from security Kaspersky has revealed that scammers are leveraging unofficial Telegram bots to steal TON tokens from unsuspecting users.
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