Bad Actors Attack Web3 Lifestyle App, STEPN
Malicious actors on the web made their presence felt when they launched a DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attack that affected STEPN. Users could finally take that elusive “rest” as the network endured yet another cyber attack as had happened only a few months before.
Users had noticed network congestion during the game, and users are concerned it would delay a planned Double Energy Event.
STEPN is a lifestyle app that rewards users using a “move-to-earn” model. Users earn when they take steps outdoors. The platform announced new updates will be available after full recovery.
The platform requested that users pause to ensure proper recording of workouts during maintenance. It gave strong assurances that developers were working hard to ensure that services are restored and the application continues to make users happy after the attacks.
A few days ago, STEPN launched an ANTI-CHEAT mechanism to stall fraud on the platform. The move-to-earn gaming app had recently announced removing GPS support in China, only to enter maintenance mode for multiple hours to effect the change.
Some users were on the receiving end of the attack as the system read them as bots under the new system due to the DDoS attack on the server.
Can Users “Move to Earn” Now?
Fortunately, the app’s maintainers were able to steer things back on course. STEPN is back online and data transfers have opened again. In addition, existing rules have been revised and there are now processing and identification rules to help everyone have a better experience on the app.
Stressing the need for an anti-cheating update, STEPN’s creators call it a “small” development but note that it is a critical piece of the puzzle in the app’s long-term development.
Did STEPN’s Token Take a Hit Too?
TronWeekly has reported that the market cap of STEPN’s native token, GMT, peaked at $860 million as of May 22. However, the unfortunate incident brought GMT 6 percent to its knees in a few short hours.
It traded at $0.0157, a marginal increase of 4 percent.
What’s the Scale of this Attack?
A DDoS attack ensures that the primary users of a network resource temporarily or indefinitely in doing so, the perpetrator(s) often disrupt the services of a host connected to a network.
DDoS attacks are quite common and are effective in disempowering networks. The tactic of congesting networks by flooding networks with unwanted traffic is a reliable one for malicious actors.
These attacks work in crypto because decentralization makes it hard to compromise a network via any other means.
In April 2022, the content delivery network, Cloudflare, suffered one of the most potent DDoS attacks ever. This was a significant attack because it was delivered via 15.3 million HTTP requests. It remains one of the largest at scale.
Since HTTPS requests generally require greater computing power, it showed the attackers’ capacity to stretch targets to their limits.
What Users Love about STEPN
STEPN offers a better user experience (UX) by using a dual-token governance system employing GST and GMT tokens. GST tokens are for paying for utilities on the network, while GMT tokens cater to governance-related decisions.
STEPN Forward
While the fate of STEPN’s Double Energy Event is of primary concern to many users due to the spate of DDoS attacks, this is still all speculation. The June 5 event would help people double their energy to a maximum of 20 to qualify to win huge rewards and prizes.
The event could potentially salvage STEPN’s GST token from the current steep slide. In any case, the token continued the nosedive, losing close to 9 percent within 7 days.
Barry Pene is a stern blockchain research/copywriter. Barry has been trading cryptos since 2017 and has been invested in issues that would put the blockchain industry on the right pedestal. Barry's research expertise cuts across blockchain as a disruptive technology, DeFis, NFTs, Web3, and reduction of energy consumption levels of cryptocurrency mining.
