Code Exploit Cyber Security: May 2022

Summer of 2021 saw the rise and wild craze of Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC) NFTs sweep across the nascent Blockchain space. NFT stands for Non-Fungible Tokens or in simpler terms, irreplaceable tokens that are unique, procedurally generated by algorithms and brought to life in a process called “minting”.

An initial quantity of 10,000 unique Bored Ape NFTs were minted at the average price of US$190, granting its owners complete property ownership rights to the digital artifacts. Holders of the Bored Ape NFT can commercialise them into comics, films, music, books, TV commercials or any other media projects of their choice.

By late 2021, the Bored Ape NFTs gained so much popularity, they caught the attention of celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, Justin Bieber, Madonna, Paris Hilton, Gwyneth Paltrow, Eminem, Jimmy Fallon, Serena Williams, and Seth Green among many others, generating sales over US$1 Billion.

Bored Ape Yacht Club ETC NFT #4853

The success of the first wave of Apes caused a lot of excitement in the NFT community, spurring on hosts of innovation in Web3 technology including the Ethereum Classic Network which this article will remain focussed.

To keep Ape NFT owners incentivised to hold their assets, digital potions known as Serums were airdropped to all holders, and upon exposure, causes the Apes to mutate with varying unique characteristics and distinguishing features.

Mutant Serums come in 3 forms: M1, M2 and M3 being the most powerful. All Apes can drink a veil of serum and become a mutant. If you were lucky enough to own a Bored Ape on the Ethereum Classic Network before 26^th April 2022, you would most likely be one of the lucky receivers of those airdrops.

Mutant Ape Yacht Club ETC NFT #5646

Those who missed out on the Serum drops however, have another chance to mint a mutant Ape out of a public offering of 10,000 mutants for only 2 ETC. Depending on when you are reading this article, you may still be in luck to mint one from their website.

No need to worry if you missed the mint because you can always pick one up on the secondary market, and in this article, we shall explore all there is to know about NFTs and the Web3 technology that powers them. By the end, I’m hoping you’ll be confident enough to navigate your way through ETC NFTs.

NFT Use Cases in Financial Services Beyond Art

NFT has become a buzzword in the Blockchain space as well as Twitter lately, but what exactly are they?

Non-fungible token (NFT) is a financial security consisting of digital data stored in a blockchain, a form of distributed ledger. Proof of ownership of an NFT is absolute and demonstrated when a holder transfers the digital asset to another person.

NFTs typically contain references to digital files such as videos, audio, and photos. Because NFTs are uniquely identifiable, they differ from cryptocurrencies, which are fungible.

Beyond the art, NFTs have various foundational use cases besides granting a person complete ownership rights. Listed below are a handful of those use cases for NFTs now and in the future:

-Storing an individual’s medical records confidentially without risk of tamper. E.g. Birth certificates

-Ownership, sales and transfer of land deeds while protecting sensitive data in the Real Estate industry

-Issuance of tickets with unique IDs for sporting events like FIFA Worldcup, and fan collectable NFTs

-Tracking the manufacturing process of products from factories to consumers in supply chain industry

-Brand awareness and engagement with their customer base, using NFTs for loyalty rewards and promotions

-Automated voting systems where access to physical polling booths is limited, cutting reliance on paper

-Proof of attendance and issuance of tamper-proof academic certificates by colleges and universities

-NFTs with high liquidity like Bored Apes can be used in De-Fi as collateral for fiat-based loans, and Stablecoin loans paid in USDT, USDC, Dai or Pax

-Storing and transmitting data such as music, programs and images across planets using IPFS protocol

-Ride sharing apps like Uber, where ETC is used to settle transactions between driver and passengers

-Building smart debit cards using ETC network as a value transfer rail to bank the unbanked, at a maintenance cost of US$0.00

-Building NFT objects and digital land masses in metaverse game environments, leveraging smart contract programs to interact and operate their own economies

-Embedding Smart Contract security algorithms in hardware such as firewalls, to protect organisations' data against cyber attacks, data leaks and ransomware

-Enable aid organisations such as The Red Cross, to transfer and store value using ETC anywhere around the planet, for essential relief efforts in conflict and war torn zones safely and securely

-Building advanced robotic machines using NFT Smart programs as a medium of communication

How to Configure MetaMask on Ethereum Classic Network

MetaMask is a gateway to Web3 technology allowing users on mobile or browser to interact with software applications called dApps built on Blockchain protocols.

At this point, it’s worth noting the difference between Ethereum Classic ETC and Ethereum ETH which is a fork of ETC and therefore share the same algorithmic programming.

Ethereum Classic (ETC) is secured by Proof-of-Work algorithm, which makes ETC a Sovereign Grade Censorship Resistant Blockchain like Bitcoin, whiles Ethereum (ETH) uses a Proof-of-Stake* algorithm susceptible to interference from external forces including the risk of capture by malicious organizations.

Both are EVM compatible and Turing Complete, which enables them to execute Smart Contracts like the one that generated the Bored Ape NFTs.

Creating a MetaMask account does not require a user to provide their email address or phone number, just a 12-word seed phrase and a password which should be kept secure, not to be shared with anyone and ideally stored in multiple locations.

Download MetaMask on your mobile or install the browser extension supported in Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge and the Brave Crypto browser.

Follow the instructions to create a new account and record your 12-word seed phrase carefully.

Make sure you set a very strong complex password to protect your MetaMask account. Unlock wallet.

1.MetaMask Initial Interface

Notice after you have unlocked your MetaMask wallet, you are connected to the Ethereum Mainnet with a US$0 ETH balance. You can tap to copy the address and email it to yourself but DO NOT send any ETC to the address at this point.

Spend some time familiarising yourself with the options tabs including viewing your private key.

2.Selecting a Blockchain Network

As a gateway to Web3, MetaMask allows you to connect to several Blockchains besides the default Ethereum network.

Click on the networks drop down menu to reveal other networks, however in our case we will proceed to create a custom RPC network for Ethereum Classic ETC.

3.Creating a Custom RPC for Ethereum Classic Network ETC

Scroll down on the network options and select Custom RPC to begin setting up the Ethereum Classic network.

RPC stands for “Remote Procedure Call” which is a protocol used by machines to call other remote programs on Blockchain networks.

If you are configuring on mobile, populate the settings as shown in the shot above. Copy settings below;

- Network Name: Ethereum Classic

- New RPC URL: https://www.ethercluster.com/etc

- Chain ID: 61

- Currency Symbol (optional): ETC

- Block Explorer URL (optional): https://blockscout.com/etc/mainnet/

Once satisfied you have entered the details correctly, click “Save” and Add ETC network to MetaMask.

4.Connecting, Viewing and Managing Your New MetaMask ETC Wallet

Congratulations! You have now completed the process of configuring ETC network on MetaMask.

Notice Ethereum Classic now appears at the top of the wallet and ETC as the main account. Test sending some ETC to your wallet address from an exchange like LBank and don’t forget to allow 0.01 ETC for transaction fees.

It is always advisable to test transactions with small amounts before moving a large amount of funds.

Minting or Buying Bored Ape Yacht Club NFTs on Ethereum Classic Network

Well done for coming this far, we are now ready to mint a Bored Ape or for those who may have missed the mint, a lot of Apes are available on the secondary market https://etcbayc.com/. for low prices.

Click on the “Marketplace” after transferring your ETC to your MetaMask wallet and Connect Wallet.

MetaMask will pop up a notification to approve your wallet to interact with the Bored Ape Smart Contract, and from there you can browse and purchase any Bored Ape NFT on the ETC network.

If you’re lucky enough to be reading this on 31st May, 2022 while the mutant mint is still live, you can access the mutant Ape Yacht Club website https://etcmayc.com/, connect your wallet (loaded with 2 ETC) and click on Mint Live for a chance to own a random mutant out of the 10,000 offered in the public mint.

After minting is complete simply click on “My Wallet” at the top right corner to view your digital asset.

Some people like to display their Apes on MetaMask mobile to show off to their friends. To do that,

- Navigate to the NFT section of your MetaMask

- Click “Import NFTs” to open a new window with “Address” and “ID”

- For Bored Ape contract address copy and paste this: 0x59E34EF31049565D041Aec6137F40f518c2D47c1

- For Mutant Ape contract address copy and paste this: 0x69ACB3240cce53d6293619e6AF784Fdda777e45d

- The ID is the number # of the Ape you wish to add to MetaMask- Click Import to finish.

Classic Apes Revolution – A Bored Ape Comic Series

If you missed out on both Bored Ape and Mutant Ape NFTs, do not despair. The developers are working on a Classic Bored Ape Comic Series scheduled for release later this year.

Available to mint for 1.5 ETC, holders of the NFT will be entitled to the full comic book when it is released, and a chance to earn passive income. More details will be revealed after the public mint completes so keep an eye out on their website for updates.

Conclusion

This write up is aimed at demonstrating the setup of MetaMask Wallet on Ethereum Classic Network ETC.

You should now be able to navigate the ETC NFT space with your account and own a premium Bored Ape NFT on the immutable Ethereum Classic Network.

For security, it is advisable to create a new account in MetaMask every time you interact with a new smart contract.

The next few years are going to be exciting for the development of NFTs and smart contracts, and I hope it becomes the subject matter of further research by educational institutions.

If you found this article useful or a whale, and would like to donate ETC to help others around the world set up an ETC MetaMask Wallet, please send your kind gestures to this ETC address:

ETC: 0x5939bFbc305C92E6b6fF3B6EEFa717238D640D12

Bored Ape Yacht Club ETC NFT #2514