Web3 products like non-fungible tokens and cryptocurrencies are already changing the world, a shift that blockchain evangelists say will revolutionize how the internet is constructed, how we bank and transfer money, how people pay for goods and even how we socialize in the nascent metaverse.
For now, most Americans couldn’t care less. Google searches show interest is already cooling in NFTs, bitcoin, decentralized autonomous organizations and other innovations associated with Web3. One reason? Rampant fraud, experts told CBS MoneyWatch.
Among a string of incidents, hackers swiped NFTs valued at $2.2 million in January from New York art collector Todd Kramer. A month later at OpenSea — the world’s largest NFT market — an estimated $1.7 million worth of NFTs were stolen in an alleged phishing scam. And users of the MetaMask, one of the most popular crypto wallets, routinely report unauthorized transactions. According to Check Point Research, last fall MetaMask users lost about $500,000 in a targeted phishing attack.
“The average selling price of NFTs and number of accounts buying and selling NFTs weekly have also dropped,” said Anand Sanwal, a tech analyst for CB Insight. “The market’s slump is raising questions about the long-term outlook for NFTs, which saw $41 [billion] in sales and…
