By James Davis
Nikhil Gopalani, the RTFKT COO, has begun 2023 with an empty crypto wallet following a massive attack. According to the COO, the phishing attack happened on Tuesday, and he reported that the clever phisher managed to steal all his Clone X NFTs, among others.
RTFKT is a crypto firm owned by Nike and deals in creating digital wearables. Recently, the company collaborated with the celebrity artist Takashi Murakami to create digital art. Nike acquired RTFKT in December 2021.
On his Twitter account, Gopalani explained how the attack hurt him but hoped the people who purchased his stolen Clones would love them. Additionally, at the time of publishing, it appears that the wallet that held the NFTs has only one left, which is a Death Row Records NFT currently worth about $60.
Hacker Could Make $175,000 From Selling Gopalani’s NFTs
Data on OpenSea shows that the attacker used two wallets to steal Gopalani’s NFTs with a collective worth of nearly $175,000. The stolen NFTs include 17 RTFKT Space Pods worth $6,200, 18 Clone X NFTs worth $137,300, 20 RTFKT Animus Eggs worth $22,800, and 15 CryptoKicks worth $9,600.
At the time of publishing, the attacker had emptied one of their two wallets while the other still holds most of the Gopalani’s NFTs. While it’s still unknown how the attack happened, Samuel Cardillo, the RTFKT CTO, suggests that the firm’s COO may have accidentally given out confidential data to the attacker.
Cardillo said that the attacker posed as an Apple representative; however, he did not provide further details to avoid legal battles with the tech firm. Also, Cardillo admitted that a firm like Apple would never request your private keys or password through emails and phones.
Holder of Gopalani’s Stolen Clone X NFT Reveals Themselves
One of Gopalani’s Clone X NFTs, #17089, has already had two different owners since it was stolen. The Current holder goes by the name ‘Lyx’ on Twitter. The Twitter user claims to know that the NFT they bought was stolen from Gopalani. In addition, Lyx revealed they have been looking to purchase the asset for months.
Lyx also tweeted that some RTFKT officials have reached out in attempts to swipe back the Clone X NFT. When asked if they were open to selling the asset, Lyx responded that they were unsure but would continue holding the NFT for some time.