The XRP community has faced a new wave of memo spam linked to a newly launched DEX, Magnetic.
Users creating new wallets on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) must contend with a new kind of memo spam. Magnetic, a newly launched decentralized exchange on the network, is spamming new users with a message to try out their new DEX and claim testnet XRP through a faucet.
XRP enthusiast Chris Thompson, in a tweet on X, flagged the spam message, which has been a source of much debate within the XRP community. Magnetic DEX has set up a system that listens to the XRPL for newly created wallets and sends users this message.
XRPL memo spam targeting new wallet creation.
This is done by listening to the ledger, then sending XRP after a new wallet has been activated.
This makes creating new wallets heavier on network storage. pic.twitter.com/0PfPgsnZCJ
— Chris Thompson 🇺🇸 🤖 (@bigcjat) September 8, 2023
The decentralized nature of blockchain means spammers can send messages without the users’ consent. Additionally, it costs 0 XRP to send such a transaction, making it a low-budget way for spammers to reach new users with minimal effort.
Memo Spam Intended For Educational Purposes, Team Claims
Magnetic’s controversial platform advertising method has not gone down well with major XRPL contributors and validators. Chris Thompson, cited earlier, notes that the spam “makes creating new wallets heavier on network storage,” while XRP validator Alloy Networks labeled the spam as “despicable.”
Another validator, Multi-Hop, reportedly based in Greece, reckoned that the introduction of Hooks protocol on the XRPL ledger would mitigate such spam.
Hooks, meant to introduce smart contracts capabilities to the XRPL, is currently under development and will, among other things, allow XRPL users to apply a blacklist on their accounts to prevent spam.
Meanwhile, Magnetic DEX, in its defense, claims the spam messages are only intended for educational purposes.
“We just want to help new users understand the blockchain and recommend DEX, where you can trade XRPL tokens, our Faucet in the Telegram bot. A little training for new users,” the team responded.
Similar to new DEX teams springing up within the XRPL ecosystem, Magnetic will hope to leverage the XLS-30d feature upgrade coming soon on the network. XLS-30d would introduce native an automated market-making (AMM) on the XRP Ledger, opening up new earning opportunities for investors.
