In a costly lesson on blockchain mechanics, a suspected airdrop farmer lost their entire $112,000 reward in Monad (MON) tokens by spending it all on gas fees for hundreds of failed transactions. The incident highlights the risks associated with both network congestion and automated trading strategies.

The cryptocurrency wallet, identified as 0x7f4, had received approximately $112,700 worth of MON tokens following the project’s launch. However, blockchain data revealed that the entire amount was subsequently drained across numerous unsuccessful transaction attempts, with each one deducting gas fees despite failing to complete.

Crypto investor Joe drew attention to the event on X, noting that the wallet owner “managed to spend their entire Monad airdrop on failed txn fees.” This scenario is a common pitfall for those trying to execute transactions quickly on a new and highly active network.

Security Flaw Adds to Airdrop Complications

Compounding the issues surrounding the Monad launch, a separate security vulnerability in the project’s claim portal was identified by Cos, the founder of blockchain security firm SlowMist. According to his analysis, the exploit allowed attackers to “hijack” a user’s session on the claim page.

This flaw enabled hackers to bind a user’s token allocation to an attacker-controlled wallet, redirecting the airdrop without requiring any confirmation from the legitimate user’s wallet. As a result, multiple users reported that their expected airdrop shares were stolen before they could even claim them.

The Persistent Problem of Airdrop Farming

The initial user’s strategy points to a practice known as airdrop farming, where individuals interact with new protocols primarily to qualify for free token distributions. These farmers often use multiple wallets to compound their rewards, a method that many projects view as extractive since the tokens are typically sold immediately after being received.

This practice has been a long-standing challenge for crypto projects. In March 2023, airdrop hunters consolidated $3.3 million worth of Arbitrum (ARB) tokens from nearly 1,500 wallets into just two addresses. Similarly, OpenSea had to pause its airdrop reward system in February after its mechanics were found to promote wash trading rather than genuine platform activity.