by Enoch Mwathwa
Pi Network has paused wallet payment requests after a large-scale scam drained millions of Pi tokens from users. Community investigations traced the losses to coordinated social engineering attacks, not a protocol breach. As a result, the team moved quickly to limit further damage while reviews continue.
Pi Network Freezes Wallet Payments After Coordinated Scam
Pi Network disabled the wallet payment request feature following reports of a massive token theft. Scammers exploited blockchain transparency to identify wallets with large Pi balances. They then sent deceptive payment requests that appeared legitimate to targeted users.
Once users approved these requests, transfers executed instantly. The process required no system intrusion. Instead, it relied on user authorization. Reports show one wallet received between 700,000 and 800,000 Pi per month since July 2025, signaling an organized effort.
On-chain trackers revealed steady inflows into the suspected scam wallet. Activity surged in December as more users gained transfer access. Analysts described the pattern as targeted and deliberate. Community leaders urged users to reject unsolicited payment requests, even from familiar names.
Special announcement to all #Pioneers.
Stay alert.
Hello #Pioneers, Scammers can find your wallet address on the blockchain and clearly see how many Pi coins you have in your wallet. Once they know your Pi coin balance, they will send you a payment request. As soon as you click… pic.twitter.com/xhJPNCLH6M
— Pi Network Alerts (@PiNetworkAlerts) December 30, 2025
Community Alerts Grow as Team Pushes Security and Development
Community moderators flagged additional wallets tied to similar scams. Some addresses appeared in schemes involving fake account unlocks. Funds often moved through multiple wallets, which complicated tracking efforts. Despite this, community data helped identify recurring patterns.
Special announcement to all #Pioneers.
Stay alert.
Hello #Pioneers, Scammers can find your wallet address on the blockchain and clearly see how many Pi coins you have in your wallet. Once they know your Pi coin balance, they will send you a payment request. As soon as you click… pic.twitter.com/xhJPNCLH6M
— Pi Network Alerts (@PiNetworkAlerts) December 30, 2025
The Pi team emphasized that no core protocol failure occurred. Instead, attackers manipulated user behavior. Even so, the incident raised concerns about user safety during increased Mainnet activity. As a precaution, the payment freeze remains active while investigations continue.
At the same time, Pi Network continues platform development. Earlier this year, the team added two-factor authentication for Mainnet migrations. This step strengthened account security during balance transfers. More recently, Pi introduced AI-assisted KYC checks. That upgrade cut manual reviews by nearly half.
In addition, the Pi Node v0.5.4 update improved desktop performance and corrected reward calculation issues. These changes aimed to stabilize the infrastructure as more users qualify for token movement. Still, the latest scam has shifted focus back to education and security awareness.
#blockchain #crypto, #decentralized, #distributed, #ledger
