By Laily UPN 
Security analysts and researchers at BitMEX Research have issued an urgent warning to early cryptocurrency investors, uncovering a sophisticated and novel scam campaign specifically targeting long-dormant Bitcoin wallets. The fraudulent scheme appears to focus heavily on historical addresses dating back to the early days of the digital asset’s ecosystem, particularly those established around 2011. By exploiting blockchain data structures and mimicking institutional authority, the perpetrators are attempting to trick unsuspecting holders into exposing sensitive private keys or surrendering personal documentation under the guise of fake legal compliance.
According to the analysis published by BitMEX Research, the attackers are leveraging the OP_Return output field within Bitcoin transactions. This optional feature allows users to attach a small, arbitrary amount of data directly to a ledger entry. In this campaign, the scammers utilize OP_Return injections to broadcast false transaction histories and misleading text notifications directly to dormant wallets. By embedding these messages into the blockchain, the malicious actors hope to catch the attention of historical holders who may check their balances infrequently or who might be startled by unexpected on-chain notifications.
The scale and audacity of the campaign are highlighted by a prominent incident involving the well-known "1Feex" wallet. This specific address currently holds approximately 80,000 Bitcoin, a massive fortune that historical blockchain tracking ties to the infamous compromise of the Mt. Gox cryptocurrency exchange during its early years of operation. In this targeted instance, the orchestrators of the scam crafted a tailored message designed to direct anyone monitoring or claiming ownership of the address toward a meticulously designed fraudulent website. This external platform was engineered to impersonate Salomon Brothers, a legendary and defunct Wall Street investment banking firm.
Upon landing on the fraudulent portal, visitors are greeted with a fabricated legal notice asserting that the high-value wallet is legally classified as "lost or abandoned." The site employs high-pressure tactics and formal corporate jargon to convince any targeted individual that immediate action is necessary to protect their perceived holdings. It invites supposed rightful owners to establish ownership and prove their claims through either signing an on-chain cryptographic message utilizing their private keys or submitting extensive personal documentation via an online web contact form. The notice establishes a strict deadline, warning victims that if no valid response or claim is registered by October 5, the wallet will legally transition into a permanently abandoned state, effectively forfeiting any rights to the underlying assets.
Fake Legal Claims and Corporate Impersonation
Upon closer examination of the fraudulent web infrastructure, BitMEX Research discovered that the website shares no genuine, verifiable connection to the historical Salomon Brothers enterprise, its legal successors, or its former executive leadership. To lend an air of legitimacy to the scam, the creators populated a page within the site listing an "advisory board" featuring real, verifiable individuals who actually worked at Salomon Brothers during the 1980s. However, investigations indicate that these former professionals have no knowledge of, affiliation with, or association with this newly emerged and spurious corporate entity.
Industry observers have noted distinct tactical similarities between this current campaign and past controversies surrounding the historical wallet. Analysts pointed out that the approach bears a strong thematic resemblance to earlier maneuvers associated with controversial figures such as Calvin Ayre, who previously financed and directed legal strategies involving the very same Bitcoin address. However, while past maneuvers involved formal legal avenues and public disputes, the current campaign relies entirely on deceptive social engineering and digital spoofing to achieve its illicit ends.
Cryptocurrency community members and on-chain investigators have quickly weighed in on the mechanics of the scam, pointing out the glaring technical inconsistencies inherent in the fraudsters’ demands. Security-conscious participants noted that if an entity were genuinely the rightful owner of a dormant address, they could easily demonstrate wallet activity simply by transferring a minute, negligible amount of Bitcoin to a new address, rather than exposing vulnerable private keys or handing over sensitive identification documents through a web portal.
These observations have led blockchain security analysts to categorize the campaign as part of a broader, increasingly sophisticated wave of social engineering scams. Rather than executing direct technical exploits against exchange infrastructure or software wallets, these modern threat actors rely on psychological manipulation, manufactured urgency, and institutional impersonation to trick victims into voluntarily compromising their own digital security perimeter.
BitMEX Research has reiterated its strong advisory to the digital asset community, emphasizing that users and holders of historical addresses must avoid interacting with the suspicious web contact forms or providing any form of personal or cryptographic credentials. Interacting with such platforms risks immediate exposure to phishing vectors, identity theft, and the permanent loss of historical cryptocurrency holdings.
The emergence of these inventive social engineering schemes highlights the escalating complexity and rising sophistication of crypto-related fraud on a global scale. As digital asset adoption matures and historical holdings appreciate significantly in value, malicious actors continuously adapt their methodologies to target vulnerable segments of the ecosystem. Data compiled across the broader sector demonstrates the sheer magnitude of this ongoing security challenge, showing that in the first half of the year alone, hackers and cybercriminal syndicates successfully stole over $2.1 billion across roughly 75 distinct security incidents, representing a noticeable increase compared to previous metrics and underscoring the critical necessity for constant vigilance across the cryptocurrency landscape.
Siti Muinah 
Reynand Wu