Did you knowHard Fork is taking the stage this fall?
The value of these pieces derives, in part, from scarcity.
At least, thats the idea.
But, sometimes, the assets arent all that they seem.
There arenumerousreportsof NFT fraudsters selling fake artworks, stealing credit card information, and hacking into cryptocurrency accounts.
Perhaps the most notorious example yet is this weeks sale of a fake Banksy NFT.
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Con artists
The counterfeit Banksy NFT was auctioned on the OpenSea marketplace.
A since-deleted link to the auction had been posted onBanksys official website.
This apparently convinced a collector to bid around$330,000 in cryptocurrency for the item.
The seller quickly accepted the bid.
The episode sparked feverish speculation.
Was Banksy himself involved?
Was the con an inside job?
Imitating art
The skepticism was understandable.
Just to add a comment, to those who feel this may have been some sort of stunt.
Pranksy was not alone in spotting similarities in the ploys of the artist and imitator.
Had Banksy concocted the whole plot as a critique of the NFT market?
Banksy pranks
Banksy has a history of using his art to mock the art market.
The prank was praised as arebuke of the excesses of the art market.
It also conveniently doubled up as an effective PR stunt.
Banksys team dismissed the claims.
Any Banksy NFT auctions are not affiliated with the artist in any shape or form.
I expect that theyre telling the truth.
The true mastermind may forever remain a mystery.
Whoever they may be, their ruse has further exposed the risks of buying NFTs.
Story byThomas Macaulay
Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he e(show all)Thomas is the managing editor of TNW.
He leads our coverage of European tech and oversees our talented team of writers.
Away from work, he enjoys playing chess (badly) and the guitar (even worse).
