The Open Network (TON) is grappling with an increase in phishing attacks amid its explosive growth in 2024, according to Yu Xian, founder of the blockchain security firm SlowMist.
The Open Network (TON) is grappling with an increase in phishing attacks amid its explosive growth in 2024, according to Yu Xian, founder of the blockchain security firm SlowMist. Xian noted that the TON ecosystem, which includes a variety of decentralized applications (DApps) and tokens, has become a prime target for phishing attackers. "There are more and more phishing activities in the TON ecosystem," Xian wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter).
The vulnerabilities stem from the ease with which scammers can infiltrate message groups within the Telegram ecosystem, posting phishing links that deceive users into compromising their TON wallets. "The Telegram ecosystem is too free, and many phishing links — or bot forms — are spread through message groups, airdrops, and other deceptive methods to lure away users’ TON wallets in batches," Xian explained.
The surge in phishing activity correlates with the rapid expansion of the TON ecosystem in 2024. The native cryptocurrency Toncoin (TON) and the play-to-earn token Notcoin (NOT) have been significant drivers of this growth. Clicker games and tokens like Notcoin have gained immense popularity among Telegram users, contributing to the ecosystem's expansion.
As of now, the TON ecosystem has a combined market capitalization of $20.2 billion, according to CoinMarketCap data. TON has a market cap of $18.6 billion, making it the 8th most valuable cryptocurrency, while NOT is valued at $1.48 billion, despite only launching slightly over a month ago.
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