Crypto and NFT Scams Are Everywhere, But Here’s Why You Should Still Take web3 Seriously

There’s Always a Fine Line Between the Future and a Scam

screenshot of web3isgoinggreat.com

Another day, another crypto/NFT/DeFi scam.

If you want a handy transcript of web3 carnage, you can fall down the rabbit hole reading web3 is going just great, former HubSpot developer Molly White’s blow-by-blow account of the seedy underbelly of crypto/NFT/DeFi rug pulls, exploits, wipe-outs, and other shenanigans.

I mean, I knew there was a lot of shady stuff happening in the web3 universe, but scrolling through Molly’s site is like watching a long, slow, stupid, multi-car pile up. There’s even a ticker at the bottom showing how much “money” got burned as you read each quick hit.

And I use quotes around “money” not because I think crypto is fake and NFTs are worthless — I use the quotes because I honestly don’t know if crypto is fake and NFTs are worthless.

Still.

So before you argue with me about the future of web3, one way or the other (It’s the future! It’s a scam!), let me try to spray a little foam on the (fake money fueled) fire.

I’m Not a Noob, Just a Fan of Nuance

I don’t have impeccable web3 bona fides, but I know more than almost anyone who isn’t actively involved in an NFT project, and these days that ever-growing army of “noobs” includes most of the people holding NFTs.

I don’t trade crypto or NFTs and haven’t held either since 2018. I did not become an overnight Bitcoin millionaire, but I have created both my own digital coin and my own collection of NFTs, and neither one was very difficult to whip up. I’m a technologist and an engineer, but I didn’t have to be. All I had to do was follow a few scripts and find a more-than-willing blockchain or marketplace to host the results of my 3rd-grade hackery.

I will also clarify that I never transacted any of what I created myself. I did what I did for my own education. But my point is, when I can essentially birth my own JoeCoin or Bored Joe Yacht Club in the wee hours of the morning before I go to real work, I get skeptical of the machine.