New crypto wallet address scams that try to take advantage of users’ carelessness are on the rise, according to the MetaMask team.
In an announcement, digital wallet provider MetaMask warns users about what it calls “scam poisoning addresses,” where attackers “poison” transaction history by sending user tokens worth $0 to their wallets. Fraudsters will use a wallet address generated from a vanity address generator and match the first and last characters of the victim’s wallet address. This is done in the hope that unsuspecting users will send funds to the wrong copycat address.
A new scam called ‘Poison Address’ is on the rise. Here’s how it works: after you send a normal transaction, the scammer sends $0 txn tokens, ‘poisoning’ the txn history. (1/3)
– MetaMask Support (@MetaMaskSupport) January 11, 2023
While such efforts will not give hackers access to user wallets, those who may be in the habit of copying wallet addresses from their transaction history before sending digital asset balances may be able to send funds to copycat addresses.
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Because of this, wallet providers warn users to be careful and double-check transactions before sending balances. The company states that it is better to check each character of the wallet address to ensure that the funds will be sent to the correct wallet.
In addition, the company recommends that users stop copying wallet addresses from transaction history and use address books when sending digital assets.