How a Sophisticated Malware Attack Drained a Singapore Crypto Investor's Eight-Year Portfolio

When Mark Koh encountered what appeared to be a legitimate game-testing opportunity on Telegram in early December, he had no reason to suspect danger. The founder of victim-support platform RektSurvivor, who has extensive experience evaluating Web3 projects, was impressed by MetaToy’s polished website, active Discord community, and responsive team interactions. The game launcher’s professional presentation made it seem trustworthy—the kind of suspicious face meme-level obviousness simply wasn’t there.

But appearances deceived. Installing the MetaToy launcher unknowingly infected his system with advanced malware designed specifically to target crypto asset holders.

The Attack Unfolds: Technical Sophistication Beyond Basic Threats

Within 24 hours of running comprehensive security measures—full system scans, suspicious file deletion, and even a complete Windows 11 reinstall—every connected software wallet was emptied. The damage: $14,189 USD (equivalent to 100,000 yuan) accumulated over eight years, completely drained from Rabby and Phantom browser extensions.

Koh’s response was methodical. Despite his antivirus detecting and blocking suspicious activity, including two DLL hijack attempts, the attackers succeeded. “I had separate seed phrases. Nothing was saved digitally,” he told security researchers, yet the funds disappeared regardless.

The technical analysis revealed a multi-layered assault. The attack combined authentication token theft with exploitation of a Google Chrome zero-day vulnerability first documented in September—enabling remote code execution on his machine. “It had multiple vectors and also implanted a malicious scheduled process,” Koh explained, indicating the scammers deployed backup attack methods simultaneously.

The Singapore Incident and Broader Cybercrime Trends

Koh reported the incident to Singapore police, who confirmed receipt of the fraud report. A second victim, based in the same region and identified as Daniel, experienced similar compromise after downloading the same malware-laden game launcher. Notably, the scammer maintained contact with Daniel, falsely believing he remained interested in accessing the platform.

This Singapore-based attack exemplifies increasingly elaborate malware distribution tactics. Recent cybercrime trends include GitHub repositories weaponized to maintain banking malware persistence, AI tool counterfeits spreading crypto-stealing variants, malicious pull requests infiltrating Ethereum extensions, and fabricated Captcha systems designed for credential harvesting.

Protective Measures: Koh’s Recommendations for High-Value Targets

Given the sophistication demonstrated, Koh emphasizes preventive protocols for developers, angel investors, and others likely to download beta applications:

Remove seed phrases from browser-based hot wallets when inactive. Standard security practices proved insufficient against this attack, making additional isolation critical.

Prioritize private key management over seed phrase storage. Using private keys limits exposure—if one wallet is compromised, derivative wallets remain protected.

Assume sophisticated attackers deploy multiple infection vectors. Antivirus detection of certain threats doesn’t guarantee complete system security; assume backup attack mechanisms exist.

The MetaToy incident serves as a stark reminder that even experienced crypto investors with professional judgment and security tools remain vulnerable to coordinated, technologically advanced threats. The combination of social engineering (the professional facade), malware delivery (game launcher), and zero-day exploitation created a attack surface that standard defenses couldn’t fully prevent.