$2.2 Million in Bored Ape NFTs Stolen, OpenSea Freezes Transactions

OpenSea has frozen $2.2 million of stolen Bored Apes NFTs after the owner reported the incident. A total of 15 apes and mutants have been stolen.

NFT marketplace OpenSea has frozen $2.2 million worth of Bored Ape NFTs after they were reported as being stolen. The NFTs on the marketplace now have a warning saying that it is “reported for suspicious activity.” Buying and selling of such items are suspended.

A total of 15 apes and mutants have been stolen. The owner of the NFTs, Todd Kramer, called the incident “arguably the worst night of his life,” and was hopeful that it would be sorted out. This is the first time NFTs from a major collection have been stolen in recent times and draws some concerns about security.

The crypto community has been said that the decision to freeze the NFTs brings decentralization into question. They argue that the handling is pretty “anti-crypto,” according to some and that it was poor security on the part of OpenSea.

OpenSea is the market’s most popular NFT platform and has attracted hundreds of thousands of users and heavy trading volume. With these NFTs becoming stolen, it will draw concern about the safety of other NFTs on the platform. There has been little information on how exactly the NFTs were stolen, and no official update yet from the platform.

NFT copycats duke it out over real Bored Ape NFTs

Meanwhile, there is a bit of a squabble happening over OpenSea over the Phunky Ape Yacht Club (PAYC). The NFT platform banned this NFT series because it was based on the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs. PAYC is virtually identical to BAYC, except for the fact it is mirrored.

The copying of the NFT has led to the community discussing the finer details of plagiarism. However, what has really stirred the pot is the fact that OpenSea has banned the PAYC NFT series. Here too are the complainants saying that a truly decentralized marketplace wouldn’t allow bans.

PAYC also appears to have a strong community, so it should be interesting to see how the series develops. In the meantime, NFT marketplaces will have to ensure strong security practices or risk alienating their members.