Solareum, a Telegram trading bot built on the Solana blockchain, has announced its permanent closure due to insufficient funding and a recent security breach. The developers expressed their regret in a message shared on the Telegram Solareum support channel, which was also posted by king.sol, the co-founder of the BONKbot trading bot, on March 31. They cited a combination of inadequate funds, changing market trends, and a recent security breach as the reasons for their decision. Despite their efforts to secure additional funding, adapt to market changes, and strengthen security measures, they can no longer guarantee the safety of their users due to the lack of funds.
Solareum is a trading bot on the Telegram messenger platform that allows users to buy and sell Solana crypto tokens based on specific parameters. It operates using the Ethereum Virtual Machine-Solana Virtual Machine bridge. However, in late March, the trading bot experienced a security breach that led to the exploitation of vulnerabilities. As a result, wallet drainers were able to steal over 2,800 SOL tokens, worth approximately $520,000, from more than 300 Solana users. This information was revealed through an analysis conducted by the BONKbot team.
Initially, it was believed that the BONKbot trading bot was responsible for the exploit. However, the team clarified on March 30 that BONKbot was safe and stated that the exploit was associated with another Solana application. The Solareum team denied any involvement in an exit scam and emphasized that they do not steal money. They acknowledged that many SOLAR users’ wallets were drained, but they believe this is part of a widespread exploit affecting other bot projects and decentralized applications (dapps). They also admitted that there is a possibility they were exploited as well.
In response to the incident, the Solareum team has contacted authorities in an attempt to freeze the stolen funds if they are ever deposited on centralized exchanges. They have also urged users to retrieve any relevant data or assets associated with Solareum as they wind down all active services and functionalities in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Solana has become a popular platform for memecoin speculation, attracting scammers. According to blockchain security firm Chainalysis, there is a large online community dedicated to a popular Solana wallet drainer kit, with over 6,000 members. Additionally, in February, Web3 security firm Blowfish detected two new Solana drainers capable of advanced attacks.
As users navigate the Solana ecosystem, it is important to be aware of the risks associated with investing in memecoins.