Crypto trading bot shuts down amid ‘critical exploit’

Posted: September 21, 2023

• Crypto bot None Trading took down its Discord and Telegram servers.
• Token holders had a 30-day window to claim their rewards before the platform ceased operations.

A Discord-based cryptocurrency and non-fungible token [NFT] trading bot, known as None Trading, ceased its operations following the discovery of a “critical exploit” within its infrastructure. None Trading also took down its Discord, Telegram, and official websites. The news was announced via None Trading’s X (formerly Twitter) account.

Dear None Trading Community,

It is with a heavy heart that we must deliver some unfortunate news today. We want to begin by expressing our deep sorrow and regret for the recent events that have transpired, which have forced us to make an incredibly difficult decision. None…

— NONE (@nonethio) September 20, 2023

As a result of this incident, None Trading expressed its inability to continue running the company effectively. This left them with no choice but to terminate their operations entirely.

Token holders had a 30-day window to claim their rewards before the platform entirely ceased operations.

The project’s native token, NONE, experienced a drastic decline of nearly 80%, plummeting to a value of $0.072 per token at press time. When the NONE token was launched in August, it reported a market capitalization of $16.5 million. None Trading initially launched in May.

Closure due to security vulnerability

Before its closure, None Trading positioned itself as an “all-in-one trading solution directly in discord.” It offered users both free and premium trading options. The project’s CEO, who went by the alias “Carve,” remained anonymous. But as per some sources, he claimed to be a 19-year-old actively involved in the NFT and token space since 2021.

The community responded to the incident with skepticism.

Telegram bot tokens under the radar

Certik, a blockchain security firm, recently cautioned against investing in crypto trading bots. On 13 September, Certik issued a warning on X (formerly Twitter), where they revealed that their data indicated a surprisingly high number of potentially fraudulent Telegram bot tokens.

Certik had also issued a warning against investing in Telegram bot tokens, expressing concerns that over 40% of these tokens could be potential exit scams. The surge in popularity of Telegram bot tokens, which have seen gains of over 1000%, raised authenticity concerns.