Any major event for a cryptocurrency often brings with it its share of scams. And the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain Merge, which is set to go to proof of stake tomorrow, is likely to be no exception. We take a quick tour of the scams you can expect, and how to spot them.
The Merge of Ethereum: what scams to expect
It’s safe to assume that some ill-intentioned people will capitalize on the Ethereum Merge craze to try and squeeze some cryptos out of their holders. What could they do?
Fake hard forks and fake airdrops
Not everyone is happy about Ethereum’s move to proof of stake. A fringe of the community has created EthereumPoW, in order to continue profiting from mining. Scammers could therefore present a fake Ethereum hard fork, and invite users to “get” fake tokens. This could take the form of phishing.
The scenario is similar for scammers who could offer fake “ETH2” tokens. These would be the “new” tokens of Ethereum in its proof-of-stake version. Of course, these do not exist. It is therefore recalled that users have no manipulation to do regarding their tokens of ETH, the update is done by itself.
Suspicious staking pools
The move to proof of stake brings a significant change: there will be no more miners, and transactions will be processed through a staking-based mechanism. Before and after The Merge, scams could therefore capitalise on users’ attraction to this new way of generating revenue.
But to become an autonomous validator, you will need 32 ETH, or $51,700 at the current rate. The solution for smaller holders is therefore to join a staking pool. The idea is that you give control of your ETH to a pool, so that you can pool your resources with other users.
Scammers could therefore present fake pools, and thus recover users’ tokens. One should therefore be wary of particularly tempting staking offers
Updates that are not updates
Again, the Ethereum upgrade will be triggered without the need for token holders to do anything. The same goes for the centralized services used. So if a service, wallet or other project asks you to do something after The Merge, be extremely careful and watch out for scams.
ETH holders will not see the change in their wallet, if nothing in particular is visible, so it’s a pretty good sign and means that The Merge has gone well.
Fake Twitter accounts of Vitalik Buterin
Vitalik Buterin is the figurehead of Ethereum, so his image is often used by scammers. On Twitter, there has been an increase in the number of fake accounts, some of which are verified:
This time in English: Don’t fall for this fake Vitalik scam. Sadly it’s even verified from Twitter! @AliMGedi pic.twitter.com/q1lR0WV6QP
– JoelDerPro (@JoelDerPro) September 12, 2022
It should be noted that Vitalik Buterin has never offered an ETH giveaway. His official account is @VitalikButerin, and no other communication comes from him.
Conclusion
If you have any doubts with Ethereum’s move to proof of stake, it is often best to do nothing. No manipulation is required, and no new tokens will be offered to the community. Scams trying to capitalize on The Merge are expected to continue to spread in the coming days, so please continue to be cautious.
