“Millions in Bitcoin Ordinals Taken by a Quant Sniper”

Ordinals Sniping: A New Front-running Attack on Bitcoin NFTs

A resurgence in the popularity of Ordinals, the latest non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Bitcoin blockchain, has brought about a new kind of attack known as sniping. This attack has recently impacted one of the most highly anticipated Ordinals projects, Ordibots, which has caused a stir within the Bitcoin community.

Sniping Ordinals for profit

Whitelisted fans of Ordibots were eagerly anticipating the minting ceremony on the prestigious Ordinals exchange, Magic Eden. However, their excitement turned into disappointment when they found out that their transactions were being targeted by quant traders employing a sophisticated front-running attack. Unlike traditional finance markets, where front-running attacks are common, this was the first time such an attack was seen in the Bitcoin Ordinals market.

Ordinals sniping is a front-running attack

Ordinals sniping, a form of front-running, allows sophisticated quant traders to identify valuable Ordinals transactions in Bitcoin’s mempools. These traders then copy the transactions, change the wallet address, and outbid the original transaction fee. This results in the whitelisted fans of Ordibots being left with unconfirmed transactions, while the snipers reap the rewards and resell the stolen merchandise for profit on NFT marketplaces.

Ordibots organizers apologize

Post the front-running attack, the organizers of Ordibots and the NFT marketplace, Magic Eden, issued an apology to the affected users. They revealed plans to airdrop custom Ordibots to those affected and assured the burning of the Ordibots “parent” token to maintain immutability. Despite their swift response, many users expressed confusion and disappointment over the incident.

Front-running “sniping” attacks

The attack on Ordibots is just the tip of the iceberg. This incident could prompt the Ordinals community to become more sophisticated in protecting against such attacks in the future, the Ordinals Show host Leonidus warned. The quant trading tactics from traditional finance have made their way into the Bitcoin market, and it is clear that the community will have to adapt quickly to prevent future attacks.

In conclusion, the rise in popularity of Ordinals has brought with it a new wave of attacks from the world of quant trading. It has also raised concerns about the security of Bitcoin’s NFTs and the need for improved measures to prevent future sniping attacks. As the Ordibots incident has shown, the community must work together to address these challenges and ensure the safety and integrity of the Bitcoin Ordinals market.

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