Hey folks, if you're deep into meme tokens like the rest of us, you know the thrill of the game comes with some serious risks. Recently, a chilling story surfaced on X that highlights just how sneaky hackers can get, especially when it involves everyday apps like Microsoft Teams and Zoom. Let's break it down and see what we can learn to keep our wallets safe.

It all started with Alexander Choi, founder of Fortune and a Cornell alum, who shared a gut-wrenching thread about losing $996,000 from his crypto wallets. Check out the original thread here. Choi got approached by what seemed like a legit account for the $SPARK memecoin on Solana. They had mutual followers, engagement from the founder, and everything looked kosher at first glance.

The scammers invited him to a partnership call via a Calendly link, leading to a Microsoft Teams meeting. Choi hopped on, chatted with a polished "team" – complete with an American-accented speaker named Dan, a co-founder Cory, and note-taker Emily. No red flags, no suspicious permissions requested. Everything felt like a standard founder-to-founder chat in the web3 space.

But days later, while planning a trip with friends, Choi noticed funds draining from his wallets – across multiple browsers and profiles. In total, nearly a million bucks gone, including USDT, USDC, SOL, and even some ETH. The hackers had compromised his machine at a deep level without him clicking any shady links during the call.

Choi later dug deeper and found the @SparkTokenSOL account had botted followers and a shady history linked to a previous rug pull. His key advice? Always host your own meetings, avoid third-party apps like Teams or Zoom, and keep most funds in cold storage or off-chain.

Enter @baoskee from daos.fun, who followed up with crucial confirmations after speaking directly with Choi. See baoskee's tweet here. Baoskee emphasized: it was the official Teams app – no downloads involved. The compromise happened at the machine level, affecting wallets scattered across different browsers. His stark warning? "If you have teams app you are vulnerable. delete rn same with zoom."

This isn't just another scam story; it's a wake-up call for anyone trading meme tokens on chains like Solana. Hackers are evolving, using sophisticated social engineering to exploit vulnerabilities in popular video conferencing tools. Even if you're not clicking anything, joining a maliciously set up call can apparently inject code or exploit extensions to gain access.

So, what can you do to protect yourself?

• Uninstall Vulnerable Apps: As baoskee advises, delete Microsoft Teams and Zoom immediately if you're not using them for essential work. Stick to Telegram or WhatsApp for crypto chats, and always be the host.

• Use Hardware Wallets: Keep the bulk of your meme token holdings in cold storage like Ledger or Trezor. Only hot wallets for active trading, and even then, minimal amounts.

• Double-Check Everything: Before any call or partnership, verify accounts thoroughly. Check handle history, follower authenticity, and consult mutuals. Tools like Solscan or Etherscan can help trace suspicious wallets.

• Air-Gapped Security: For high-value moves, use air-gapped devices – computers never connected to the internet – to sign transactions.

• Stay Paranoid: In crypto, complacency is the enemy. Regularly revoke permissions on apps like Revoke.cash and monitor your wallets with alerts.

Choi's loss is brutal, but his transparency – and baoskee's quick follow-up – could save countless others in the meme token community. Remember, this space rewards the vigilant. Stay safe out there, and let's keep building without the hacks holding us back.