Memeland MVP NFT Scammed Raymond Lai
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Twitter user Raymond Lai was with the Memeland community since May 2022. He was tricked in October into authorizing the transfer of his NFT to a scammer. Memeland refunded the 1.35 ETH it received as sales commission. It is not known whether Raymond reported the theft to any law enforcement or attempted any sort of recovery.
This is a global/international case not involving a specific country.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]
About Memeland
Having started as 9GAG in 2008, Memeland now invites people to join and contribute to their community and company through blockchain technology[1]. "We joined 500 Startups in 2011, raised seed funding, joined Y Combinator in 2012, and never stopped shipping."[1] Memeland NFT is a collection of 9,999 utility-enabled PFPs (Profile Picture Frames)[2] initiated by 9GAG as they venture into the web3 space[3]. Memeland joined OpenSea in June 2022[4]. Memeland NFTs can be purchased on NFT marketplaces like OpenSea, LooksRare, and X2Y2[3].
9GAG, based in Hong Kong, has a massive global audience of over 200 million[2] on social media platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok[3]. Multiple famous celebrities and investors are involved in the project, such as Kevin Rose, Gary Vaynerchuk, Kevin Ma[3], and Hong Kong tycoon Adrian Cheng[2]. Memeland NFT is comparable to successful projects like Moonbirds, Invisible Friends, CloneX, Doodles, and the Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC), with similarities in having a company behind it, token systems, metaverse land, celebrity involvement, Web2 experience, and building an NFT ecosystem[2].
Memeland is a venture studio focusing on web3 and building social products for communities[1]. 9GAG aims to make the world happier with Memeland NFT as its first collection[2]. Memeland's mission is to empower creators by connecting web2 and web3 communities[2]. The project revolves around the concept of finding Memeland, a legendary treasure island known for its glory, fortune, love, and the best memes[3]. They aim to connect creators and communities through creativity, the $MEME token, and NFTs[1].
"A @Memeland MVP lost his/her MVP NFT due to a scam. The MVP NFT was traded before it's flagged. Memeland will be refunding the royalty we got from the trade to the original MVP holder. It's not much but we hope it helps a bit."
"Set up a good wallet hygiene. Don't trust. Verify."
"Please share a safe wallet address with me. Memeland will refund the royalty (1.35E) it got from the 15E sale to you. It's not much but I hope it helps a bit."
"That is a very generous move sir"
"Raymond has been here since May. That's the least we can do for a trusted member of the community."
"We will also introduce a "staking + locking" mechanism for all MVP NFTs in 1-2 weeks to improve the security.
It will be similar to the "Growing" of The Potatoz—there are multiple reports that "Growing" has saved the Potatoz from scams and hacks.
Better safe than sorry."
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
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- 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.
| Date | Event | Description |
|---|---|---|
| October 4th, 2022 5:55:00 AM MDT | Refund Announced | Raymond is promised a refund of the 1.35 ETH that 9GAG received as sales commission on the stolen NFT. |
| October 4th, 2022 6:17:00 AM MDT | Twitter Post | Incident shared on Twitter and commission covered. |
Technical Details
This section includes specific detailed technical analysis of any security breaches which happened. What specific software vulnerabilities contributed to the problem and how were they exploited?
Total Amount Lost
The total amount lost has been estimated at $20,000 USD.
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
The total amount recovered has been estimated at $2,000 USD.
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?
Individual Prevention Policies
No specific policies for individual prevention have yet been identified in this case.
For the full list of how to protect your funds as an individual, check our Prevention Policies for Individuals guide.
Platform Prevention Policies
Policies for platforms to take to prevent this situation have not yet been selected in this case.
For the full list of how to protect your funds as a financial service, check our Prevention Policies for Platforms guide.
Regulatory Prevention Policies
No specific regulatory policies have yet been identified in this case.
For the full list of regulatory policies that can prevent loss, check our Prevention Policies for Regulators guide.
References
- ↑ @Memeland Twitter (Nov 21, 2022)
- ↑ @RaymondLai819 Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @9gagceo Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @readytounplug Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @RavensClawx07 Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @DanyaUA_web3 Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @famousfxck Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @DorisNFT3 Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ @sikander69 Twitter (Sep 18, 2023)
- ↑ What Is Memeland Nft By 9gag Not Just A Jpeg But Utility Enabled Pfps (Nov 22, 2022)
- ↑ Memeland NFT Review: Team, Utility, Roadmap And More (Nov 22, 2022)
- ↑ @Memeland Twitter (Nov 21, 2022)
- ↑ @9gagceo Twitter (Nov 22, 2022)
- ↑ https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/ethereum/historical-data/ (Dec 21, 2021)