OpenSea Hashmasks Fake Listing

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OpenSea

HashMasks sells NFTs on OpenSea. Another malicious actor managed to create a second OpenSea account which was also named HashMasks and copied the same layout elements, complete with a fake verification badge. Some individuals were fooled into purchasing NFTs from the fake account instead of the real account. It is uncertain if any funds will be recovered.

This is a global/international case not involving a specific country.

About OpenSea

"Hashmasks are ancient traits and memories of the first travelers to Earth. Their journey here was long and hard. The Hashmasks forgot their names by the time they arrived. They left clues for us to unravel so that we could discover their meaning.​"

"Hashmasks is a living digital art collectible created by over 70 artists globally. It is a collection of 16,384 unique digital portraits. Brought to you by Suum Cuique Labs from Zug, Switzerland."

"By holding the artwork, you accumulate the NCT token on a daily basis, which allows you to choose a name for your portrait on the Ethereum blockchain. This is your opportunity to be among the first to participate in one of the largest collaborative NFT art projects in existence."

"The person or persons who created these fakes almost deserves credit for being cunning enough to superimpose what looks like a real OpenSea verified blue check mark on the stolen Hashmasks logo inside the logo’s border (see below). They link to the real Hashmasks website and Discord and are betting people won’t notice the extra apostrophe after “Hasmasks.” Another tell is, this sham collection is on Polygon. The real Hashmasks are only on the Ethereum network. Stealing the legit background is another sneaky touch. The URL with a “-10” after hashmasks is a dead giveaway and the total traded is a pittance compared to the REAL Hashmasks at 39,600 ETH total traded volume. Lastly, there’s the owner count well short of the true collection’s 5,000+ unique wallets."

This is a global/international case not involving a specific country.

The background of the exchange platform, service, or individuals involved, as it would have been seen or understood at the time of the events.

Include:

• Known history of when and how the service was started.
• What problems does the company or service claim to solve?
• What marketing materials were used by the firm or business?
• Audits performed, and excerpts that may have been included.
• Business registration documents shown (fake or legitimate).
• How were people recruited to participate?
• Public warnings and announcements prior to the event.

Don't Include:

• Any wording which directly states or implies that the business is/was illegitimate, or that a vulnerability existed.
• Anything that wasn't reasonably knowable at the time of the event.

There could be more than one section here. If the same platform is involved with multiple incidents, then it can be linked to a main article page.

The Reality

This sections is included if a case involved deception or information that was unknown at the time. Examples include:

• When the service was actually started (if different than the "official story").
• Who actually ran a service and their own personal history.
• How the service was structured behind the scenes. (For example, there was no "trading bot".)
• Details of what audits reported and how vulnerabilities were missed during auditing.

What Happened

The specific events of the loss and how it came about. What actually happened to cause the loss and some of the events leading up to it.

Key Event Timeline - OpenSea Hashmasks Fake Listing

Date	Event	Description
October 17th, 2021 12:00:00 AM	Main Event	Expand this into a brief description of what happened and the impact. If multiple lines are necessary, add them here.

Total Amount Lost

The total amount lost is unknown.

How much was lost and how was it calculated? If there are conflicting reports, which are accurate and where does the discrepancy lie?

Immediate Reactions

How did the various parties involved (firm, platform, management, and/or affected individual(s)) deal with the events? Were services shut down? Were announcements made? Were groups formed?

Ultimate Outcome

What was the end result? Was any investigation done? Were any individuals prosecuted? Was there a lawsuit? Was any tracing done?

Total Amount Recovered

There do not appear to have been any funds recovered in this case.

What funds were recovered? What funds were reimbursed for those affected users?

Ongoing Developments

What parts of this case are still remaining to be concluded?

Prevention Policies

Individuals transacting in the cryptocurrency space need to be extra careful to ensure that they are purchasing an asset from the correct location. Get the link from at least 3 independent sources and verify that they all match.

Trading platforms have a similar responsibility to check all newly listed coins or tokens.