Phishing ad linked to misspelt Soneium uncovered on Google

Phishing ad linked to misspelt Soneium uncovered on Google

By Rebecca Campbell - min read
Updated 23 October 2024
Ein Hacker vor dem Computer
  • Scam Sniffer uncovered the ad on Google, directing users to a phishing website
  • The blockchain security company searched for the word ‘someium’
  • Soneium, a L2 blockchain, went live in August to boost Web3 adoption

A sponsored Google advert allegedly connected to Sony’s new blockchain project, Soneium, is a crypto wallet drainer.

This was uncovered by Scam Sniffer, a blockchain security company, who posted a message on X. According to the firm, they searched for someium on Google, which directed them to a phishing ad.

Scam Sniffer added: “Phishing always happens when you’re not paying attention, even if you mistakenly spell ‘soneium’ as ‘someium.’”

When Coinjournal checked it out, we found the site looked the same; however, according to Scam Sniffer, “in some cases, it will jump to a phishing website.”

Soneium is a layer two blockchain developed by Sony Block Solutions Labs. Started in collaboration with Startale Labs, the initiative went live in August with the aim of driving Web3 adoption.

Since its launch, Soneium has teamed up with Transak and Circle, enabling fiat on-ramp services and USDC.

$35m lost

Earlier this month, a crypto whale recently lost around $35 million worth of Few Wrapped Duo ETH (fwDETH) tokens in a major phishing attack on the Blast network.

The attack, first flagged by Scam Sniffer and confirmed by security firms PeckShield and BlockSec, occurred when the victim unknowingly signed a fraudulent “permit” signature, allowing the attacker to siphon funds from their wallet.

Following the attack, the price of DETH dropped by over 38%, dropping from $3,482 to $2,150 as the attacker liquidated the stolen tokens. The price of fwDETH also dropped by over 90% from $2,000 to $100, but later recovered to around $1,000.