Report a Fake Wallet and Earn a Reward
A Ukrainian startup called HAPI Labs, which specializes in developing cybersecurity tools for DeFi, has launched a project called Scamfari OSINT. It collects and analyzes information from open sources to identify cryptocurrency wallets associated with fraud, terrorist financing, or sanctions violations.
Individuals can report such wallets via a special Telegram bot, selecting the relevant violation category and providing evidence. The team then employs reputable sources and tools to analyze suspicious activity. It either confirms the report and adds the wallet address to a special database or rejects it. Any attempt at intentional deception will block the account.
Presently, each report is manually verified by two HAPI Labs employees, yet work is underway to see if report validation could be automated.
We’re now feeding the reports we get to the [latest AI product by OpenAI] GPT-4 – it looks very raw at this point, but promising. Not trying to catch some hype here, but we believe it can be helpful in the near future, – © Mark Letsyuk, Head of Analytics & Research at HAPI Labs.
If a person provides truthful information, they are rewarded with HAPI tokens: $1 for each new address, $0.1 for a repeat, and $5 if the address is linked to a sanctioned individual or legal entity. Tokens are manually transferred to the user's account every two weeks. HAPI Labs plans to automate the entire payout process through smart contracts and replace their tokens with stablecoins if the community agrees to it.
The offered rewards motivate individuals to actively search for deceitful wallets and proofs, while Scamfari can intervene by creating an appropriate database. Within a week, OSINT gathered over 15,000 addresses reported by users.
Many people in Ukraine lost their jobs [because of the war] and some made several hundred dollars during the past season. In these times, it’s good money. Now, people want to try and do it regularly, – © Mark Letsyuk, Head of Analytics & Research at HAPI Labs.
HAPI Labs previously ran two-week competitions within the Scamfari project. The idea and goals were exactly the same as in OSINT, but only the top five participants received HAPI tokens at the end of the competition. The third season of Scamfari started on March 15th, but it is likely to be the last OSINT launch.
Additionally, a memorandum was signed with the Cyber Police of Ukraine. This memorandum will also identify, track, and block criminal virtual assets. It is likely that this will occur if the assets are cashed out through exchanges. The main goal is to search for wallets that raise money to support Russian military aggression against Ukraine or any activity that falls under UN/NATO or OFAC US sanctions.
According to investigations, such assets have reached $7 million since the war began. The collaboration of various market participants, ranging from exchanges such as WhiteBIT and Kuna to cybersecurity firms, has occasionally enabled the blocking of some funds intended to support Russian military aggression.
