Friend.Tech Data Breach Exposes 101,000 User Wallet Addresses
In an unsettling development, Banteg, one of the core contributors to Yearn Finance, has made waves by sharing a repository on GitHub containing sensitive information belonging to more than 101,000 users of the friend.tech platform. This treasure trove of data comprises wallet addresses linked to the Base (a Layer 2 chain) and corresponding Twitter usernames.
What’s more concerning is that Banteg pointed out a disconcerting fact: many users had unwittingly granted friend.tech permission to post on their behalf. This raises questions about whether these users fully comprehended the extent of access they were providing.
The plot thickens as Spot On chain analysts unearthed a vulnerability in friend.tech’s API, leading to the inadvertent exposure of wallet information. This flaw allowed users to peek into wallets created by others through the API.
On a different note, friend.tech’s financial performance has been making headlines. According to data from DefiLlama, the platform generated an astounding $1.42 million in fees on August 19th, an accomplishment that pushed it ahead of prominent players in the crypto realm like Uniswap and the Bitcoin network. Presently, it’s nipping at the heels of the Ethereum blockchain and Lido Finance in terms of fee generation, as revealed by DeFiLlama data.
Friend.Tech operates atop Coinbase’s Base Layer 2 chain, bringing a novel twist to social networking. It seamlessly integrates with X (formerly Twitter), allowing users to trade tokenized shares in each other’s profiles. Shareholders are granted exclusive access to content and private chat rooms, fostering a unique social experience.
It’s essential to mention that friend.tech currently maintains an invite-only model, underscoring its careful and selective approach to user onboarding. Impressively, the platform has attracted 65,000 distinctive share traders, amassing a substantial trading volume of $26 million, as per insights from a Dune Analytics dashboard by Crypto Koryo.
Behind this intriguing project stands a mysterious developer known as Racer, who has a track record of creating social media networks based on nonfungible tokens (NFTs). Friend.tech is on a mission to cater to crypto influencers and Web3 projects, offering them a pathway to earn royalties from trading fees while strengthening ties with venture capitalists and key players within the crypto industry.
