In a costly error, a copy-paste action led a trader to lose $26 million. The trader, known pseudonymously as qklpjeth, mistakenly transferred 7,912 re-staked Renzo Ethereum (ezETH) to an incorrect account back in June. Now locked and inaccessible, the trader has put forth a $2.6 million reward with hopes that white-hat hackers can help retrieve the lost funds.
Qklpjeth admitted the fault resulting from a “wrong copy” saw the funds moved to a safe contract rather than his personal account, rendering the tokens inaccessible. After trying every traditional method to recoup the funds without success, qklpjeth turned to the wider online community for assistance. The trader now hopes that potential glitches in a smart contract could be identified and leveraged to unlock the tokens.
Many have been quick to provide advice, including DefiLlama developer 0xngmi who suggested reaching out to the Renzo protocol. However, qklpjeth had already followed this path, only to be turned down due to regulatory restrictions.
The unfortunate event catalysed a discussion about the need for user experience improvements in the crypto industry. Harrison Seletsky, director of business development at SPACE ID, emphasized the risks of common errors in monetary transactions, particularly ones as simple as copy-paste mistakes. He cited the incident as a call to address these issues in order to lead to successful mass adoption of cryptocurrency. According to Seletsky, most people would rather trust a centralized organization with their financial security than gamble with potential personal errors. Thus, he underlined the need for enhanced user experience, focusing primarily on crypto transactions.