Five Tips for Dealing with Web 3.0 Hackers
From Web 1.0 to Web 2.0, to the newly ushered in Web 3.0, the Internet continues to evolve. Unfortunately, the initial stage of Web 3.0 has already faced security challenges from hackers.
While the decentralized applications (dapps) that are now accessible are already Web 3 to some extent, humans haven’t made it into the Web 3 version of the Internet yet. There’s still a lot of work to be done before Web 3 is fully functional.
Security is the biggest challenge highlighted in various media reports on Web 3 hacking. Web 3 can only succeed if the current security challenges are addressed and hackers can no longer steal users’ funds.
Just in late March, a hot wallet of Encryption Capital founder Arthur Cheong was hacked, resulting in the theft of more than 70 blue-chip NFTs and losses of more than $1.7 million.
“It was a targeted social engineering attack,” Cheong, whose net name Arthur0x said, “and it was received in a spear-phishing email that appeared to really be sent by a company we invested in, with industry-related content.”
Adam Cochran, a crypto researcher, and fund partner, believes that Cheong’s computer may have contracted a virus after opening the mail. He further noted that PDF., docxs., File extensions such as xlsx and .jpeg are the most common risks, and it is possible that even antivirus software scans will not be able to detect them.
Overall, these unfortunate stories are likely to become more common.
How to stay safe in the Web 3 world
In the emerging Web 3 world, here are 5 tips to try to protect yourself.
1. Do not connect your wallet to any unknown dapp
Web 3 is still in its infancy, and there’s still a lot to figure out. If you’re exploring Web 3, the first security measure you need to take is: don’t connect your main wallet to any unknown decentralized application.
If you encounter a situation where you have to connect your wallet to a dapp, make sure it is the appropriate dapp to avoid losing funds.
2. Don’t click on shared links on social platforms
Although you are communicating and chatting with people who seem to be like-minded through social app such as WeChat and Discord, you often don’t fully understand the true intentions of these people on social platforms. Just as it is advisable, don’t click on random links shared on the Internet and do not click on shared links on these platforms unless their origin can be verified.
If you insist on using these links, be careful when clicking on the link to open the dapp, as the links can easily be redirected.
3. Avoid sharing too much personal information on the Internet
Sharing too much personal information online will make you more vulnerable to social engineering attacks. Never share personal information online unless you know exactly why you are sharing it.
Besides, don’t share sensitive information, such as transaction data linked to your main wallet.
4. Verify that the people you communicate with online are indeed the people they claim to be
Unfortunately, it’s not easy to control who can contact you online. People can hide their real motives for wanting to connect with you, but those motives don’t have to be innocent. That said, if someone contacts you online, you need to verify that the person they claim is real.
It’s easy for scammers to impersonate someone else to open an account and then use those accounts to deceive innocent users.
5. Use different passwords on different websites
Using the same login password on different social networking sites is never a good choice. Using a password manager is recommended. A good password manager will not only create strong passwords, but also unique ones. That way, even if one of your accounts is hacked, the others are still safe.
