Four.Meme resumes operations after $120K sandwich attack

The BNB Chain-based memecoin launch platform Four.Meme has resumed operations after being hit with a sandwich attack that exploited it for around $120,000.  

Four.Meme said in a March 18 X post that its launch function was back after inspecting and addressing a security issue. It had earlier suspended the function to investigate it, saying it was “under attack.”

“The launch function has now been resumed after a thorough security inspection. Our team has addressed the issue and reinforced system security. Compensation for affected users is underway,” the Four.Meme team said. 

Web3 security firm ExVul said in a March 18 X post that the exploit appeared to be a market manipulation technique known as a sandwich attack that netted the attacker $120,000. 

It said the attacker “pre-calculated the address for creating the liquidity pool’s trading pair” and utilized one of the platform’s functions to purchase tokens, which successfully bypassed Four.Meme’s token transfer restrictions.

“Subsequently, the hacker lay in wait for Four.Meme to add liquidity to the transaction, ultimately siphoning off the funds,” ExVul added.

Blockchain security firm CertiK came to a similar conclusion and said the attacker transferred an imbalanced amount of un-launched tokens to pair addresses before the pair was created, then manipulated the price at launch to sell them afterward for profit. 

“In this case of SBL token, for example, the attacker sent a bit of SBL token to the pre-calculated pair address in advance, then profited 21.1 BNB by sandwiching the add liquidity transaction at launch,” CertiK said. 

The tactic saw the attacker leave with at least 192 BNB (BNB), worth about $120,000, which they sent to the decentralized crypto exchange FixedFloat, according to CertiK. 

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It’s the second time that Four.Meme has been attacked in as many months, with a Feb. 11 exploit resulting in the loss of about $183,000 worth of digital assets.

Across the broader crypto industry, February saw $1.53 billion in losses to scams, exploits and hacks, with the $1.4 billion Bybit hack accounting for the lion’s share. 

Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis says the past year saw $51 billion in illicit transaction volume, partly due to crypto crime entering a professionalized era dominated by AI-driven scams, stablecoin laundering, and efficient cyber syndicates. 

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