NPM attack drains only $500 worth of meme coins

The newly discovered supply chain attack hit just a few wallets, stealing around $500 in various tokens. The injection of malicious code into npm JavaScript packages exposed a big weakness in crypto usage.

This supply chain attack that could drain crypto wallets? It didn't steal millions. Looking at the attacker's wallets, only about $500 in assets vanished in the first 12 hours after discovery. Not much.

Users got warnings to stop sending crypto. Kind of silly. You can't exactly pause a global permissionless system. Everyone expected huge losses. Didn't happen.

Arkham Intelligence data shows the npm attacker grabbed just 0.22 SOL and some meme tokens worth around $497. The crypto space lost way more from other protocols yesterday. The attack seems dangerous anyway. We got lucky the attacker didn't intercept any big transactions.

Supply chain npm attack resembles previous hacks

This attack felt similar to earlier major hacks. It changed the destination wallet at the last moment. The bad code could potentially redirect assets from sites using those tainted JavaScript packages.

People don't seem to understand the npm exploit. It's like when major platforms lost significant funds to hackers through compromising user interfaces. Front end code on websites that used the malicious packages are compromised. So make sure to verify transactions carefully.

— Beanie (@beaniemaxi) October 3, 2025

Previous hacks had deliberate, limited front end exploits. This npm thing? It affected up to 2B weekly downloads. But early reports suggest limited damage. Not entirely clear why.

Most big Web3 platforms said their code was safe. Trading continued. The stolen tokens were mostly on Ethereum - meme coins like BRETT, DORKY, VISTA, and GONDOLA. No ETH taken.

Small-scale traders and liquidity providers lost funds. Not massively though. The apps themselves weren't compromised. Risk came from users signing transactions without checking properly.

Is crypto still at risk from the npm attack?

Crypto wallets face risk from supply chain attacks. Always have. The theft potential depends on the apps themselves and timing. Small window for exploitation.

Examples of the malicious code got published everywhere. This probably helped app developers stay safe.

Attacks happened after new downloads. This meant vulnerabilities entered only a limited number of crypto apps. Several hours later, it became clear certain wallet users got hit hardest. Desktop wallet ecosystem wasn't targeted.

As we near late 2025, meme coins keep evolving - mixing nostalgia, tech, and humor. The "Is it worth it" meme seems especially popular, creating tons of crypto tokens from its viral appeal. Despite this security issue, the meme coin world stays pretty vibrant. Creators still use Imgflip and Image Resizer to make content that turns into token ideas.