A Solana wallet tested a fake address with $10, then sent it $30,750

What happened

Bitquery’s Solana research shows how a successful $10 test can precede a larger payment to the wrong recipient. The findings show why a successful small test transfer can still precede a much larger payment to a scammer.

Lookalike payment addresses targeted nearly 4.5 million Solana wallets (the software or device that holds the keys to someone’s crypto) over 11 months, according to blockchain-data firm Bitquery’s Oct. The technique, known as address poisoning, plants a misleading entry in a wallet’s payment history.

A tiny incoming transfer puts the sender’s lookalike address near a legitimate payment. If the user later copies that address, they can send money to the wrong recipient.