Darknet market’s alleged ‘exit scam’ triggers possible theft of millions in BTC, XMR

Users of a prominent darknet marketplace have reported difficulties in withdrawing Bitcoin (BTC) and Monero (XMR) due to concerns of an “exit scam.” The marketplace, known as Incognito Market, primarily facilitates the trading of narcotics and is estimated to be worth between $10 million to $30 million, according to Dark Web Informer. On March 5, users started raising accusations against the marketplace’s administrators after experiencing issues with their crypto withdrawals. Incognito’s administrator, “Pharoah,” responded by assuring users on the darknet-based site Dread that the problems were a result of changes in the withdrawal systems. However, further reports of withdrawal problems and a post from dark web security expert Hugbunter on Dread seem to confirm the existence of an exit scam. Hugbunter claimed to have been offered a bribe by “Pharoah” to remove any negative posts about Incognito. The alleged exit scam coincides with a Bitcoin rally that has resulted in the cryptocurrency surpassing its previous all-time high and reaching a new high of over $69,200. Monero has also experienced gains in the past week, reaching a peak of $151.74 before falling to $142.01 at the time of writing. A recent report by Chainalysis revealed that darknet marketplaces generated revenue of at least $1.7 billion in 2023, indicating a rebound from the previous year when Hydra, the world’s largest darknet marketplace, was shut down by authorities. While no single marketplace has taken Hydra’s place, smaller marketplaces have thrived by catering to specific niches and adopting specialized roles. Mega Darknet Market leads the pack with over $500 billion in crypto inflows.