Major Loss: Nearly $50 Million Lost in Stablecoin Address Poisoning Scam

A cryptocurrency user has fallen victim to a staggering loss of almost $50 million due to an address poisoning scam. This incident occurred when the victim accidentally copied a fraudulent wallet address during a Binance withdrawal. The event highlights ongoing concerns about the rising tide of crypto fraud as U.S. senators advocate for the SAFE Crypto Act to enhance security in the realm of cryptocurrency.

Key Takeaways

A user lost nearly $50 million in a stablecoin address poisoning scam after mistakenly copying a fake address.
Address poisoning scams are designed to trick users into sending funds to malicious wallet addresses that closely resemble legitimate ones.
The SAFE Crypto Act aims to strengthen law enforcement and prevention measures against cryptocurrency fraud.
Security experts recommend verifying wallet addresses and using protection measures for large transactions.

User loses $50m in stablecoin address poisoning scam

The Surge in Crypto Scams

According to blockchain security firm Web3 Antivirus, this incident represents one of the largest losses in cryptocurrency transactions this year. The user initially conducted a small test transfer to the intended address, only to later send 49,999,950 stablecoins to a fraudulent address observed in their transaction history.

Address poisoning scams operate by embedding look-alike wallet addresses in a user's transaction logs. These counterfeit addresses are typically nearly identical to genuine recipient addresses, often with only a few characters different. This type of scam exploits the common habit of copying and pasting rather than taking advantage of technical weaknesses.

The affected wallet had been active for about two years, primarily used for stablecoin exchanges. Reports indicate that the user withdrew funds from Binance shortly before falling victim to the scam.

Statistics reveal that cryptocurrency-related hacks have surged in 2025, leading to billions of dollars in losses within the cryptocurrency space. In response, Senators Elissa Slotkin and Jerry Moran have introduced the SAFE Crypto Act, designed to establish a federal task force focused on enforcing regulations and advancing cooperation in combating cryptocurrency fraud.

"How to lose $50M in under an hour. This is one of the largest on-chain scam losses we’ve seen recently. A single victim lost $50M in $USDT to an address poisoning scam. The funds had arrived less than 1 hour earlier."
— Web3 Antivirus (@web3_antivirus), December 19, 2025

The SAFE Crypto Act, standing for Strengthening Agency Frameworks for Enforcement of Cryptocurrency Act, aims to create a federal task force that identifies, monitors, and prevents scams related to cryptocurrency. The goal of this legislation is to improve coordination between governmental bodies, law enforcement, and private sector professionals to help protect investors, particularly those who are older and more vulnerable to investment fraud.

The proposed law encourages collaboration with various entities, including digital asset service providers, stablecoin issuers, custodians, blockchain intelligence firms, consumer protection organizations, and groups advocating for victims of fraud.

The task force would focus on examining trends in cryptocurrency fraud, including Ponzi schemes, rug pulls, fraudulent token sales, money laundering, and financial scams targeting individuals.

To protect against falling victim to similar scams, security experts offer several recommendations, such as verifying addresses through multiple sources, employing hardware wallets for significant transactions, and utilizing on-chain monitoring tools to detect any suspicious activities prior to transferring large amounts of cryptocurrency.