FBI Releases Public Alert Regarding Fraudulent Cryptocurrency Apps
App store operators appear to be engaged in a continual game of whack-a-mole with fake crypto apps.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States has issued a public warning regarding fraudulent Cryptocurrency applications, which are estimated to have defrauded U.S. investors out of $42.7 million to date.
In order to mislead investors, fraudsters have constructed apps using the same logos and identifying information as real Crypto organisations, according to a Monday advice published by the securities and intelligence department.
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The FBI reported that 244 individuals have previously fallen victim to these fraudulent applications.
In one instance, cybercriminals persuaded victims to download an app bearing the logo of a legitimate U.S. financial institution and instructed them to deposit Cryptocurrencies into wallets supposedly associated with their accounts.
When victims attempted to withdraw funds from the app, they would be required to pay taxes on those funds.
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However, this was really another pretext to separate victims from additional monies, as the withdrawals would remain inaccessible even if the victims made the payments.
Approximately $3.7 million was stolen from 28 victims between December 2021 and May 2022, according to the FBI.
Between October 2021 and May 2022, cybercriminals operating under the firm name "YiBit" defrauded at least four victims of around $5.5 million employing a similar style of deception.
In November 2021, a third instance featured thieves operating under the moniker "Supay."
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They conned two victims by convincing them to transfer Cryptocurrency into their app wallets, which were subsequently frozen unless additional amounts were deposited.
On Crypto Twitter, warnings concerning bogus apps have also been circulating.
A user reported that a buddy recently fell victim to a scam that originated on the internet messaging service WhatsApp, in which the victim was enticed to download a bogus cryptocurrency app and put funds into the app's wallet.
A week later, the cryptographic application vanished.
In early 2018, the cyber security company ESET found a "complex strategy" that distributed Trojan programmes disguised as popular Cryptocurrency Wallets.
Then, these applications would attempt to steal Cryptocurrency from their victims.
A fake cryptocurrency programme masquerading as a mobile Trezor app on Apple's App Store apparently caused one user to lose $600,000 worth of Bitcoin (BTC) in 2017.
The United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said in June 2022 that as much as $1 billion in cryptocurrency was lost to scammers since 2021, with roughly half of all crypto-related scams emanating from social media platforms.
The FBI has advised Cryptocurrency Investors to be aware of unsolicited solicitations to download investing apps, to verify an app's (and the company's) legitimacy, and to "approach with scepticism" apps with limited or broken functionality.
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