Address Poisoning
Address poisoning is a cryptocurrency scam where criminals send small amounts from fake addresses that closely resemble legitimate ones to trick users into accidentally sending funds to the wrong wallet.
Kacper Tomasiak
Web & SEO Manager at Swapped.com
Address poisoning is one of the sneakiest scams in the crypto world, and it's becoming more common every day. Scammers use this technique to trick you into accidentally sending your cryptocurrency to their wallet instead of where you actually intended to send it.
What Does Address Poisoning Mean?
Address poisoning is a scam where criminals send you tiny amounts of cryptocurrency from fake addresses that look almost identical to real addresses you've used before. The goal is simple but devious: they want you to accidentally copy their fake address when making your next transaction, sending your crypto straight to them instead of your intended recipient.
Think of it like someone putting a fake mailbox right next to your real one, hoping you'll accidentally drop your valuable letters in the wrong slot. The fake mailbox looks so similar to the real one that you might not notice the difference until it's too late.
This scam works because cryptocurrency addresses are incredibly long strings of random letters and numbers that are nearly impossible to memorize. Most people rely on copying addresses from their transaction history rather than typing them out manually.
Remember to carefully check the destination address as blockchain transactions are irreversible!
How Address Poisoning Attacks Work
Scammers use sophisticated methods to create these deceptive addresses and get them in front of potential victims.
The Copycat Strategy
Criminals monitor the blockchain for active wallet addresses, particularly those involved in frequent or high-value transactions. Once they identify a target, they use special software to generate thousands of addresses until they find ones that match the beginning and end characters of legitimate addresses.
This process, called "vanity address generation," can take considerable computing power, but the potential payoff makes it worthwhile for scammers. They're essentially playing a numbers game, creating addresses that look familiar enough to fool someone copying and pasting quickly.
Why Similar Addresses Fool People
Cryptocurrency addresses are long strings of random-looking characters that are nearly impossible to memorize. Most people only check the first few and last few characters when verifying an address, assuming the middle part is correct. Address poisoning exploits this common shortcut.
Scammers also take advantage of how people typically handle crypto transactions. Many users keep frequently used addresses in their transaction history or clipboard, making it easy to accidentally select a poisoned address that appears in their recent activity.
Mailboxes and crypto addresses both ensure the right recipient gets the message or transaction.
Why Address Poisoning Is Dangerous
Address poisoning is particularly dangerous because it exploits normal human behavior. Most crypto users develop shortcuts to save time, like copying addresses from their transaction history instead of asking recipients to provide their addresses again.
The scam is also hard to detect because the fake transactions use very small amounts. A deposit of $0.50 worth of cryptocurrency might not even trigger a notification on your phone, so you might not notice the poisoned transaction until it's too late.
Once you send crypto to the wrong address, there's no way to reverse the transaction. Unlike traditional banking, cryptocurrency transactions are permanent and irreversible. The scammer keeps your money, and you have no recourse to get it back.
Signs You Might Be Targeted
Address poisoning attacks often follow patterns that you can learn to recognize. Multiple transactions appearing in your history with similar but slightly different addresses could indicate an ongoing poisoning attempt.
Another red flag is receiving small amounts of cryptocurrency from unknown addresses. Scammers sometimes send tiny amounts (called "dust") to make their poisoned addresses appear in your transaction history, increasing the chances you'll accidentally select them later.
Pay attention to any addresses that seem familiar but feel slightly "off" when you look at them. Trust your instincts – taking an extra minute to verify an address is always worth avoiding the permanent loss of your crypto.
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