The number of attempts to steal funds from crypto users is growing

In September, the number of attempts by Russian users to switch to phishing and scam pages on the topic of cryptocurrencies increased significantly, cybersecurity experts note. They attribute this both to the seasonal factor of the recovery of business activity after the summer, and to the departure of the Binance exchange from Russia. The recommendations are standard – do not click on links in advertising messages.

As Kaspersky Lab told Kommersant, in September, compared to August, the number of attempts by Russian users to switch to phishing and scam pages on the topic of cryptocurrencies increased by almost 50% – from 211 thousand to 317 thousand. In the first quarter of the decision “ Kaspersky Labs prevented 924 thousand attempts by Russian users to switch to phishing and scam pages on the topic of cryptocurrencies. In the second quarter, this figure dropped to almost 379 thousand. However, in the third it increased again to 633 thousand.

The company does not have data for 2022, however, according to independent financial analyst Andrei Barhota, in the third quarter of 2022, the total number of scam pages on the topic of cryptocurrencies was about 400 thousand, and a year later exceeded 700 thousand. According to a report from the cybersecurity platform Immunefi, The total number of cyber attacks in the third quarter of 2023 increased by 153% year-on-year. A Chainanalysis report indicates a 60% increase in cryptocurrency scams in the third quarter.

September is a typical month for a revival of activity; scammers are the same people and go on vacation in the summer, notes the head of InDeFi Smart Bank Sergei Mendeleev. In addition, the traditional autumn growth of Bitcoin begins, market capitalization is growing, attracting thousands of new users, says Vitaly Kitaychuk, deputy head of the financial technology company ONLY BANK. According to Coinmarketcap, Bitcoin was trading at $26.8 thousand on October 15.

0xprocessing co-founder Nikita Vassev added that the departure of the Binance exchange from the market “has brought confusion to the established order of things in the Russian crypto market.” “Many trading and arbitrage links were lost, and not all traders were able to reorient themselves to alternative trading platforms in time. A popular recruitment scheme for arbitration training is now popular on Telegram, during which the “student” is sent a phishing link to a supposed exchanger, after clicking on which the victim loses money,” Mr. Vassev clarified.

According to Mr. Kitaychuk’s estimates, every year about 10–15% of users who bought crypto assets for the first time in the previous year become victims of scammers. As the experience and time of using crypto assets increases, the expert says, the share is reduced to 2–5%. Based on the latest events of 2022–2023, Mr. Kitaychuk notes, the amount of lost funds of Russian citizens alone amounted to hundreds of millions of dollars.

To protect yourself from scammers in the crypto market, experts recommend following several standard, but still relevant, precautions. Firstly, Mr. Vassev says, you should be careful when making any transactions with cryptocurrencies, and do not trust suspicious links or messages. It is important, he emphasizes, not to follow links from advertisements and not to provide anyone with your personal data and secret keys.

Secondly, the expert advises using “only official and verified platforms and wallets” for storing and trading cryptocurrencies. It is necessary to install reliable anti-virus software and update it regularly, adds Mr. Vassev.

“It is very important to observe security measures when creating and using passwords – it is recommended to use complex passwords consisting of various symbols, numbers and letters in different cases,” the expert notes. “Finally, it is always useful to be aware of the latest trends and news in the crypto world in order to be more aware of possible threats and deceptions – training and awareness can be key factors in protecting against scammers.”

Ksenia Kulikova