The Other Side Of The Coin

As Cryptocurrencies Continue To Gain Momentum Over The Past Few Months, Threat Actors Are Employing Numerous Techniques To Exploit Cryptocurrency Investors. Daniel Bardsley Speaks To Experts To Discuss How The Industry Can Be Regulated To Fend Off Fraudsters.

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The United States president, Donald Trump, is never far from the headlines, and in July it was, among much else, his comments on Twitter about cryptocurrencies that were creating a stir.

Saying that he was “not a fan of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies”, Trump described the value of them as “highly volatile and based on thin air”.

“Unregulated crypto assets can facilitate unlawful behaviour, including drug trade and other illegal activity,” he said.

Aside from the question of whether cryptocurrencies do, indeed, allow underground activity to flourish, the cryptocurrency market remains caught up in multiple security issues.

In the UAE this was brought to light by recent false claims that Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, had set up a Bitcoin trading scheme.

As media in the Emirates reported, the Facebook-promoted scam, which had no connection to Sheikh Mohammed, had asked people for $250 (Dh918) to sign up.

Indeed cryptocurrency scams involving made-up endorsements by well-known individuals and fake internet trading platforms are a regular problem.

For example, reports from earlier this year said that the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom had seen a tripling in the number of cryptocurrency and foreign exchange frauds over the previous 12 months.

Yet another cryptocurrency-related scam was brought to light recently by the cybersecurity company ESET.

An ESET researcher unearthed fake cryptocurrency apps that impersonated the Turkish cryptocurrency exchange BtcTurk in an effort to get users’ login credentials.

The company reported that the fraudulent apps are able to get around two-factor authentication based on SMS.

In some cases, the cryptocurrency exchanges themselves raise concerns, which is perhaps unsurprising given the lack of regulation in the sector.