Towards the end of December, Netflix released the second season of “Squid Game,” the most-watched series in the platform’s history. Shortly after its release, tokens inspired by the dystopian drama flooded the cryptocurrency market.
Blockchain security firm PeckShield has warned the community about the fraudulent nature of some Squid Game-inspired tokens just a day after the chain launched.
Squid Game Codes Rise
The Squid Game series depicts a high-stakes competition where contestants, facing difficult financial circumstances, risk their lives in order to win a large prize.
Following the renewed popularity of the “Squid Game” series after the release of the second season on December 26, tokens with names inspired by the series quickly appeared on many cryptocurrency exchanges.
However, the rapid emergence of several Squid Game-inspired tokens has raised concerns about their credibility and the potential financial risks associated with investing in them.
On December 27, blockchain security firm PeckShield warned about the safety of various tokens, identifying them as potential scams.
“Beware of scam Squid Game tokens circulating in the marketplace. We discovered a scam#SquidGametoken posted on Base just 3 hours ago, with the publisher being the largest holder,” Peckshield said in a post on X.
In that case, Peckshield pointed to a particular token that was published on Ethereum’s Base platform, noting that its publisher owns a large portion of the supply. Since its launch, the token has seen a 99% price drop.
Similar charts on Solana have shown suspicious behavior, such as identical large token holders, indicating potential price manipulation and coordinated pump-and-dump operations, which often end in rug pulls.
Users specifically pointed to a Squid Game-inspired account on X that was heavily promoting their token. Observers noted an unusual frequency among the largest wallets holding the token, often indicating potential fraud.
“Yes, these are the biggest winners. Yes, they all look the same. No, this is not a coincidence. Don’t fall for the trap,” said one community member.
Scams and hacks are a constant challenge in the crypto space throughout 2024. Several prominent social media accounts have been hacked in the past few months to promote fraudulent tokens, pulling the rug out from under them once unsuspecting traders have invested their capital.
Cryptocurrency fraud and hacks cost the industry more than $2.3 billion in 2024, a 40% increase from 2023.
Similar experience in 2021
This isn’t the first time Squid Game has been involved in crypto token scams. After the series launched its first season in 2021, a number of token launches started with a bang and ended in scams. In one notable incident, a token called ‘SQUID’ saw a rapid and massive price surge with gains of over 45,000%.
However, this rapid growth was followed by reports of investors being unable to sell their holdings on decentralized exchanges like PancakeSwap, prompting platforms like CoinMarketCap to issue warnings.
This incident, often cited as one of the biggest rug pulls, highlights the risks associated with investing in speculative cryptocurrencies, especially those with limited liquidity and transparency.