$50 million USDT scam case follow-up: How funds flow to mixers within half an hour

【CryptoWorld】A shocking large-scale scam has recently occurred. According to on-chain security monitoring data, a scammer successfully deceived $50 million USDT through a social engineering method called “transfer record poisoning attack.” Even more astonishing is the speed of the fund transfer—just 30 minutes after the funds arrived, the scammer initiated a laundering process.

Their operational approach is worth noting: first, they used MetaMask Swap to directly exchange $50 million USDT for DAI stablecoin, then quickly converted all DAI into 16,690 ETH. In the final step, all funds were sent to the mixing service Tornado Cash for obfuscation.

This case exposes several issues. First, the power of social engineering attacks like transfer record poisoning; second, the rapid flow of scam funds. From stablecoin to stablecoin, then to mainstream cryptocurrencies, and finally to mixers, the entire chain demonstrates the malicious actors’ deep understanding of transaction processes. Users need to be vigilant about unfamiliar transfer records, especially seemingly “reasonable” transaction prompts, as they may hide significant risks.