Have you heard about the recent recovery of stolen nonfungible tokens (NFTs) from the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) and Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC)? These NFTs, belonging to the trading platform NFT Trader, were taken in a malicious hack but have been successfully retrieved following a bounty payment. The theft involved NFTs valued at nearly $3 million and occurred on December 16.
A Ransom Request for the Stolen NFTs
The hacker behind the theft claimed to be cleaning up after another user’s exploit, and demanded a ransom for the return of the NFTs. A message from the hacker read, “If you want these NFT’s back then you need to pay me 120 ETH … and then I will send you the NFT’s, it’s as simple as that, and I never lie, believe me …”
The Community’s Swift Response
A community-led initiative, spearheaded by Boring Security — a Web3 security project funded by ApeCoin — responded swiftly. They managed to recover all the stolen assets in less than 24 hours by paying the 120 Ether (ETH) bounty, equivalent to around $267,000 at the time. “All 36 BAYC and 18 MAYC that the exploiter had are now in our possession. We sent her [the hacker] 10% of the floor price of the collections as bounty,” the Boring Security team announced on X (formerly Twitter).
The Bounty Payment and the Role of Yuga Labs
The bounty was paid by Greg Solano, co-founder of Yuga Labs, the company behind the creation of both NFT collections. Yuga Labs also played a crucial role in the negotiations to recover the tokens and return them to their rightful owners at no cost.
According to “Foobar”, a pseudonymous founder and developer of Delegate, a smart contract upgrade introduced a vulnerability 11 days prior to the hack. This vulnerability allowed the misuse of a multicall feature, leading to unauthorized transfers of NFTs due to previously granted trading permissions. In light of this incident, users were advised to revoke all permissions granted to two old contracts to prevent potential future thefts.
While the NFT Trader’s stolen Apes incident was resolved swiftly, it serves as a reminder of the importance of security in the world of digital assets. For those who are actively trading or investing in NFTs, using a reliable platform such as cryptoview.io can help manage your portfolio effectively.
Remember, in the fast-paced and ever-evolving world of NFTs, staying informed and vigilant is key. Don’t let your digital treasures become someone else’s bounty.
