This 20-year-old executed one of the largest personal thefts in history.
His name is Malone Lam.
In August 2024, he scammed a victim of 4,100 bitcoins and used the money to buy 31 supercars.
20-year-old Malone Lam from Singapore and his accomplice Jandil Serrano stole $230 million worth of cryptocurrency from an anonymous victim a few months ago, after which both were arrested.
How did it happen?
The scammer first triggered a notification of 'unauthorized Google account access' through technical means, alerting the victim to the abnormality.
Days later, Malone Lam impersonated a Google employee and called the victim to inquire about these 'unauthorized accesses.'
After multiple communications, he gradually manipulated the victim, obtaining enough information to successfully access the victim's Google Drive.
In Google Drive, they discovered the victim’s personal information, including details of their cryptocurrency assets on the Gemini platform.
Subsequently, his accomplice Jandil posed as an employee of the Gemini platform and contacted the victim again.
Jandil successfully persuaded the victim to download software that allegedly could 'protect crypto assets.'
The scammer used this software to steal the victim’s private keys, stealing up to 4,100 bitcoins.
At that time, the total value of these bitcoins was as high as $230 million.
The two then laundered the stolen funds through multiple cryptocurrency exchanges and mixing services.
So how were they caught?
Malone Lam began a spree of extravagant spending with his portion of the stolen funds.
He spent lavishly on the streets of Los Angeles, splurging $569,000 in a night club!
He even gifted several ladies five Hermes Birkin bags at the nightclub.
Court documents show that he purchased 31 supercars, a watch worth $2 million, and rented multiple luxury apartments in Los Angeles and Miami.
Ultimately, he was arrested while flying from Los Angeles to Miami on a private jet.
The theft case of Malone Lam proves that social engineering attacks can easily lead to the loss of one’s crypto assets.
You can protect your assets using the following three methods:
1/ Prevent unauthorized access to devices:
Never allow unverified individuals to remotely access your devices.
This can effectively prevent becoming a victim due to sensitive data being compromised.
2/ Enable two-factor authentication (2FA):
Two-factor authentication is especially important for email and cloud accounts that store sensitive data.
It is recommended to use authenticator applications or services with built-in two-factor authentication features, and to avoid SMS-based 2FA as much as possible to prevent the risk of SIM card theft.
3/ Use secure key storage:
Recognize the risks of storing private keys on exchanges.
If mismanaged, you could easily lose your assets like the victims in the Malone Lam case.
To protect asset security, it is recommended to choose a safer, self-hosted, and user-friendly wallet service.
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