RIYADH: Bitcoin, the leading cryptocurrency internationally, traded higher on Monday, rising by 4.90 percent to $31,188.36 as of 8:00 a.m. Riyadh time.

Ethereum, the second most traded cryptocurrency, was priced at $1,880.47 up by 4.01 percent, according to data from Coindesk.

Losses from crypto scams top $1 billion since 2021

More than 46,000 people have reported losing over $1 billion in crypto to scams since the start of 2021, according to the latest FTC Consumer Protection Data Spotlight.

Data Spotlight reported a 60-fold increase in reported crypto scam losses in 2021 over 2018 with a median individual loss of $2,600.

As there is no bank or other entity to report suspicious transactions before they happen, people are still confused about how cryptocurrency works, and since crypto transfers cannot be reversed, certain characteristics of cryptocurrency may explain why it’s popular with criminals and con artists, according to the FTC.

Yuga Labs confirms hack of discord server

Yuga Labs reported that the Bored Ape Yacht Club Discord server was hacked Saturday, with the attacker making off with 200 Ethereum worth of NFTs. The 200 Ethereum is worth $360,000.

The project’s community manager, Boris Vagner, was duped when his Discord account was compromised, and the attacker posted phishing links in the BAYC and another related metaverse project, Otherside’s Discord channels.

The hack first came to light through Twitter user NFTherder, who also estimated that 145 Ethereum, or approximately $260,000, was stolen along with the NFTs, traced back to four different wallets, Coindesk reported.

Yuga Labs has been impersonated three times in recent months to steal users’ funds, said Coindesk.

The first happened on April 1 when Mutant Ape Yacht Club #8662 was stolen through a phishing link posted on the project’s Discord. The second occurred on April 25 when Bored Ape Yacht Club accounts posted fake links to an Otherside minting, Coindesk added.