While the regular news channels and mainfeeds of crypto updates talk about the latest DE-FI pool or liquidity site or stake center getting hacked for millions, an smaller version of the same trend has been going off like a runaway freight train in the NFT world for a couple years now. The problem, of course, is that the frequency is increasing. Know as "rug pulls" the strategy is the same: get folks amped up, get them to pump money into the project without anything to show for it, tell them everything is on the way, and then bank the funds and disappear. Classic pump and run.

The latest now to go to the rug pull hall of fame in the WAX network is Desert Farm Game, according to the chatter on the wire, running off with something close to 730,000 WAX. Granted, at current pricing, they're not going to make it to Switzerland for very long, but it still adds up to $73,000 cold cash translated through their Binance account. These little fiascos are getting so common, a fold is happening probably one to two scams a day.

Of course, the joke is, "Wax is a skem."

True, the WAX network, just like ETH, is a house of cards that relies on all the players doing their part and staying true to the system as honest buyers and sellers. So, it also makes it ripe territory for someone to come in and wipe the store shelves clean as well. It's a bit like a story I had to write a few months back about how a family opened up a small farm food shop in their village with the unique idea that customers just visit, take inventory desired, and leave the payment in the box. For the most part it worked. But occasionally, there was some dipsh*t that just took the entire money box.

Fortunately, thieves can't help but run their mouths off. It's how most scammers get caught. They brag about their accomplishments, puff up their ego, and then get identified. But for all the others whose money was taken, there's usually no return. In the case of Desert Farm, it's now a desert, literally.

Another common problem in Discord-land continues to be the proliferation of clicking on bad links. Folks love free stuff. And Discord is full of free crypto drops and NFTs. However, if you have no idea what you're clicking, and you then click that WAX wallet approval right after for a transfer, it's the digital version of pulling open the barn door and letting the neighborhood in. Given the fact that most people keep everything in one wallet, that link might as well be the key to saying, "Take all my digital assets, please." More than one sobbing user has graced me with their stories in channels about how their thousands of dollars of NFTs were wiped out in one night after a bad connection (no pun intended). 

Now, the interesting thing is, much of the mayhem is preventable. I'm no Internet security expert, but I do have a number of trainings under my belt, and there are some very simple things you can do to make it exponentially harder to steal your stuff.

• Spread your good stuff out - Don't keep all your good assets in one account. Use a sacrificial account for any new connections or clicking so, if it does get compromised, they only get crap and not your good stuff. It's regularly recommended to use the WAX cloud wallet for daily stuff and an Anchor wallet for safe storage. I won't argue that Anchor is a bit of a pain to figure out, but it's been recommended repeatedly for side account safety.
• Search before clicking - Try to do a bit of research before clicking on something or trying a project. You may find other victims and can learn from their pain what to avoid. In the case of Desert Farm, check out the details on this project. Little in terms of contact and operating out of Seychelles since just April 2022. Hmm...

• Avoid the urge to grab - I'm guilty of it too, you see a freebie offer and want to jump on it before the freebie disappears. However, if you have no idea where it came from, confirming that transfer or approval after the click can be your digital death. Again, if you really have to click, use a dummy account. It's kind of like a middle finger to scammers. They might get in, but there's nothing to steal except a post-it saying, "suckah!"
• Stick with Discord projects that have staying power - While I will agree trying to get in early on a project typically means the best value and ROI on anything you put into it, there are so many fly-by-night scams now, it's not worth being the first. Let some bigger players take the heat and follow their lead instead. I usually track bigger players I know and their WAX accounts to see what NFT projects are worth looking at. If they are putting big stakes in, I'll pony up a bit and wind up my exposure slowly. I make less, but it's a lot safer.
• Use free money - Always, always use your grind money and sales from freebies first for new projects. That way, if it really is a scam, you didn't lose any of your real cash. Your freebie money acts as a buffer. High gain means high risk, so make your gains take the heat, not your principal funds.

I can't promise Discord will get any safer anytime soon. In fact, I think the risk factors on projects will get worse. Many of the NFT market forums aren't doing much to police known bad projects either. So it's really on you to protect your digital account.

Until the Wild Wild Discord West gets tamed a bit, don't play if you can't afford to lose it all.