Cybersecurity researchers have shared details of a malware campaign targeting Ethereum, XRP, and Solana.

The attack mainly targets Atomic and Exodus wallet users through compromised node package manager (NPM) packages.

It then redirects transactions to attacker-controlled addresses without the wallet owner’s knowledge.

The attack begins when developers unknowingly install trojanized npm packages in their projects. Researchers identified “pdf-to-office” as a compromised package that appears legitimate but contains hidden malicious code.

Once installed, the package scans the system for installed cryptocurrency wallets and injects malicious code that intercepts transactions.

‘Escalation in targeting’

“This latest campaign represents an escalation in the ongoing targeting of cryptocurrency users through software supply chain attacks,” researchers noted in their report.

The malware can redirect transactions across multiple cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ETH), Tron-based USDT, XRP (XRP), and Solana (SOL).

ReversingLabs identified the campaign through their analysis of suspicious npm packages and detected multiple indicators of malicious behavior including suspicious URL connections and code patterns matching previously identified threats. Their technical examination reveals a multi-stage attack that uses advanced obfuscation techniques to evade detection.

The infection process begins when the malicious package executes its payload targeting wallet software installed on the system. The code specifically searches for application files in certain paths.

Once located, the malware extracts the application archive. This process is executed through code that creates temporary directories, extracts the application files, injects the malicious code, and then repacks everything to appear normal.

The malware modifies transaction handling code to replace legitimate wallet addresses with attacker-controlled ones using base64 encoding.

For example, when a user attempts to send ETH, the code replaces the recipient address with an attacker’s address decoded from a base64 string.

The impact of this malware can be tragic because transactions appear normal in the wallet interface while funds are being sent to attackers.

Users have no visual indication that their transactions have been compromised until they verify the blockchain transaction and discover funds went to an unexpected address.

Despite rolling out a large number of upgrades and innovations, the Ethereum price continues to lag behind Bitcoin (BTC) by a wide margin. Reports reveal that ETH has suffered a staggering 77% price crash against BTC — a decline likely fueled by a mix of technical, macro, and sentiment-driven factors. Notably, On-chain analytics platform, Santiment has now pinpointed and broken down the key reasons behind these price struggles. 

Ethereum Price Nosedives Against Bitcoin

On April 11, Santiment released a detailed report on Ethereum, highlighting its almost four-year underperformance and the reasons behind it. Ethereum, once revered as the cryptocurrency most likely to dethrone Bitcoin, has recently suffered a brutal price decline when measured directly against BTC.

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According to Santiment’s on-chain data, Ethereum has crashed by approximately 77% against Bitcoin since December 2021. While the dollar value of ETH hasn’t completely collapsed, especially compared to other altcoins, the long-term BTC/ETH ratio still paints a gruesome picture for Ethereum holders. 

Notably, Ethereum has also failed to recover anywhere near its November 2021 all-time high of $4,760. In contrast, Bitcoin has surged ahead, reclaiming much of its market dominance and outpacing ETH across almost every timeframe. 

This disparity has led many traders and former maximalists to compare ETH to a “shitcoin.” Even worse, various mid to low-cap altcoins have already outperformed Ethereum over the short, mid, and long-term timeframes, causing further embarrassment for the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization. Based on Santiment’s report, the ETH/BTC price ratio chart alone is enough to trigger doubt and uncertainty among long-term holders.

Behind The Scenes Of Ethereum Price Struggles

Beyond price action and market volatility, Santiment reveals that there are fundamental reasons for Ethereum’s sluggish performance over the years. Some of the major criticisms that analysts and traders have pinpointed include technical, sentimental, and regulatory issues.

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Ironically, Ethereum’s Layer 2 solutions are one of the key drivers of its underperformance. L2 solutions like Arbitrum, Optimism, and zkSync are reportedly cannibalizing activity on the mainnet, taking investments from ETH while spreading investor attention thin. 

Secondly, Ethereum seems to struggle with complex roadmaps and communication, which has led to investor confusion. Major updates like The Merge and Shanghai have been difficult for investors to comprehend, making ETH feel less accessible than BTC. 

Thirdly, users remain frustrated by Ethereum’s relatively high gas fees and the slow rollout of key upgrades. This has pushed them toward more affordable and faster alternatives, significantly reducing adoption.

Another primary reason for Ethereum’s crash against Bitcoin is ongoing regulatory concerns. Unlike Bitcoin, which has a more established legal precedent, Ethereum faces constant uncertainty about whether it could be labeled a security. 

Other points include ETH’s lack of investment appeal. While Bitcoin maintains the title as a stable digital gold, Ethereum appears to be caught in between, having no clear or attractive investment narrative. Moreover, newer blockchains like Solana and Cardano are also attracting a significant number of users with cheaper and faster solutions, ultimately pulling investments away from ETH.

The final reason Santiment has identified for Ethereum’s long-term price descent is rising selling pressure. Post-upgrade withdrawals of stakes ETHs have created steady sell-side pressure, limiting growth and momentum compared to Bitcoin.

Featured image from Unsplash, chart from Tradingview.com

Despite Ethereum’s continued struggle to maintain the $1,600 price level, several altcoins posted triple-digit gains.

Wayfinder (PROMPT), Magic Internet Money (MIM), and Bitcoin Wizards (WZRD) are leading the charge in the past 24 hours.

Wayfinder has risen by 179.2% in the last 24 hours and trades at $0.5043 from a low of $0.1798. The token currently has a market cap of $113 million.

The impressive rally follows several key developments for the project. Wayfinder recently completed an airdrop, distributing 40% of the total PROMPT supply to eligible participants.

This wide distribution was complemented by listings on multiple major exchanges like Bitget, KuCoin, OKX, Hyperliquid, HTX, Gate.io, etc.

Social media visibility has also played a role in PROMPT’s price surge as the token has also been trending on X.

Second on CoinGecko’s top crypto gainers list is MAGIC•INTERNET•MONEY (MIM). MIM has gained 147% over the past 24 hours to $0.003587 from a low of $0.00145.

MIM’s price surge appears directly connected to the project’s recently announced token migration. The team behind MIM has implemented a migration plan allowing holders of Bitcoin Wizards (WZRD) tokens to claim MIM until April 15.

This migration announcement has driven increased trading activity for both tokens.

Bitcoin Wizards has jumped 127.5% in the last 24 hours and has reached $2.50 from $1.09. The token has maintained a strong surge over longer timeframes as well, with 100% growth over the past week and 96% over the last month.

Created by the same team behind Mavensbot, WZRD’s performance is closely tied to the ongoing token migration.

Both tokens have been trending on social media platforms as users discuss the migration process.

While these smaller tokens rally, Ethereum (ETH) continues to face pressure and struggles to maintain price stability in the past few weeks, even as Bitcoin (BTC) has shown some stability around $83,000.