The article recounts the origin of Stellarscam.report, created to combat 'memo-phishing' scams on the Stellar Network where scammers send malicious memos with tiny XLM amounts to trick users into revealing secret keys. The author, frustrated by repeated scam reports on r/Stellar, developed a bot in mid-May 2020 to automatically send warning transactions to victims. Monthly stats show the bot countered tens of thousands of scam transactions, highlighting ongoing community efforts against persistent fraud.
In early 2020, the author noticed a surge in 'memo-phishing' scam reports on r/Stellar, where scammers send small XLM amounts with memos linking to fake sites that steal secret keys. Inspired by community warnings and personal encounters with scams like fake airdrops and forks, the author built a bot in mid-May 2020 to detect these transactions and send 'SCAM' warnings to targeted addresses. Monthly reports detail the bot's activity: 4,906 transactions in May, peaking at 46,391 in June amid scammer adaptations, and continuing through October with scams like 'DaddyCoin'. The article also covers related email-phishing campaigns mimicking Stellar staking. Emphasizing education and vigilance, the author launched stellarscam.report for takedown services, aiming to make Stellar the safest blockchain through community efforts.
