DeFi Founder Hacks Own App to Force Apple's Hand
DeFiLlama's founder intentionally got hacked to force Apple to remove a fake app. He downloaded a fake DeFiLlama app from the App Store, funded it with a small wallet of cryptocurrency, and let it steal the funds as proof that it was a scam.
The fake app had been on the App Store for months despite complaints from DeFiLlama's team about trademark and impersonation violations. Apple removed the app just days after the founder reported his findings.
0xngmi, the pseudonymous founder of DeFiLlama, said that he was publicizing the episode so other crypto teams wouldn't waste time like DeFiLlama did in trying to get the fake app removed. He described the scammers as using 'dead companies' to pass Apple's identity checks and complete know-your-customer verification.
DeFiLlama has been working on a legitimate mobile app, but its launch was delayed until the fake versions were gone. The team already runs LlamaSearch, a directory of vetted crypto domains, due to the prevalence of manipulated search results.