Uniswap Founder Warns Users After Fake Ad Drains Trader’s Crypto Wallet

Highlights:

• A Polymarket trader lost mid-six-figure crypto after clicking a fake Uniswap Google ad.
• Uniswap founder criticized ad-driven scams and warned that fraudulent sites keep appearing in search results.
• Analyst ZachXBT said Google ads scams drained multi-million-dollar sums from users.

A Polymarket trader has reportedly lost a mid-six-figure amount of cryptocurrency after interacting with a fraudulent Uniswap link promoted through a Google search advertisement. The case highlights growing concerns around phishing attacks that exploit paid search placements to target crypto users.

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Single Wallet Approval Triggered Fund Drain

According to details shared publicly by the victim on X under the name “Ika,” the incident began with a routine search for Uniswap. A sponsored result appeared at the top of Google’s search page, presenting itself as the official website. The link led to a clone site designed to closely mirror the legitimate Uniswap interface.

The user was not aware of this scam, and the user connected a crypto wallet and approved a transaction request. That approval granted permission for the malicious contract to access the wallet’s funds. Within moments, the assets were transferred out.

Security researchers say the phishing site deployed a wallet-draining script known as Angelferno. Once a user signs a malicious approval, such scripts automatically move tokens to addresses controlled by attackers. In this case, the victim’s holdings were emptied almost instantly.

Victim Shares Emotional Statement on X

The user described the loss in an emotional message titled “I lost everything, what’s next?” He wrote that he had spent two years building capital while balancing efforts to secure a web3 job. Reflecting on the incident, he said the loss was not simply bad luck but the result of a chain of poor decisions.

Uniswap Founder Criticizes Ad-Driven Scam Model

The story quickly gained attention across the crypto community. The founder of DefiLlama shared the incident as a warning to other traders.

This person lost his entire net worth, a mid-six-figs portfolio, in a single tx because of a scam uniswap ad on google

I've spent years trying to stop these losses, I've built 5 different products to stop this

pls use https://t.co/n7L9D9A5N1 to get a safe link https://t.co/AivuwnXOtJ pic.twitter.com/THXdT4l9Z0

— 0xngmi (@0xngmi) February 19, 2026

Shortly afterward, the founder of the real Uniswap addressed the issue, stating that such scams have been ongoing for years. He criticized what he described as an ad-driven ecosystem that allows fraudulent websites to appear prominently in search results.

These scams are horrible, we’ve been fighting them for years

There were scam Uniswap apps while we waited months for App Store approval

Scam ads keep returning despite years of reporting

They ban 3rd party tools like ublock that combat the issue

The ad economy needs to go https://t.co/KCepOv8zUH

— Hayden Adams 🦄 (@haydenzadams) February 20, 2026

Independent on-chain investigator ZachXBT has raised concerns about years of abuse linked to Google Ads. He believes the scale of phishing scams on the platform is too serious to overlook. In his view, senior leadership should face criminal accountability for failing to prevent repeated misuse. He also pointed out that multi 9 figure amounts have been stolen through phishing ads that impersonated trusted crypto platforms and drained user funds.

The incident underscores a persistent risk within decentralized finance. Because transactions are irreversible, users bear full responsibility for wallet approvals and site verification. Once funds are transferred, recovery options are limited.

Blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis and other security groups have repeatedly identified search engine phishing ads as a significant attack vector in crypto-related theft. In July last year, a decentralized finance user reportedly lost $1.2 million in a nearly identical scam that also involved a fake Uniswap advertisement.

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