Crypto phishing scams to rise during holiday shopping season

As a seasoned cybersecurity analyst with over two decades of experience under my belt, I can confidently say that the warning about a potential surge in crypto phishing attacks in December is not one to be taken lightly. With my career spanning across multiple economic cycles and technological advancements, I’ve seen how criminals adapt their tactics to exploit consumer behavior. In this case, it seems they are targeting the Christmas shopping season, when people are more likely to be distracted and potentially vulnerable.

Crypto phishing attempts by scammers might peak in December, cybersecurity professionals predict, taking advantage of the busy Christmas shopping period.

Approximately 9,200 cryptocurrency investors suffered a combined loss of around $9.3 million due to phishing scams in November, as stated in a blog post dated December 3rd by Scam Sniffer, an online service dedicated to tracking such fraudulent activities within the crypto sphere.

The platform stated that a total of $9,380,000 was taken, affecting 9,208 individuals. In November alone, one person lost an astounding $661,000 worth of stETH in mere minutes, but this is just the beginning of the problem,” (paraphrased text)

As a crypto investor, I understand the gravity of the statement that malicious signatures continue to be the most dangerous tool for cryptocurrency scammers. The act of endorsing a malicious blockchain transaction can place an attacker in command of my digital assets within the wallet, leading to draining attacks on my wallet.

Crypto phishing scams to surge in December — Cyvers

As a researcher, I’m observing a significant drop in monthly phishing losses. Whereas October saw a staggering loss of approximately $20.2 million due to these attacks, November’s tally has reduced by more than half, standing at $9.3 million. This represents a decrease of over 53%.

Meanwhile, there might be an increase in phishing attempts during December, as cybercriminals look to capitalize on the rise of digital transactions before the Christmas celebrations. This prediction comes from Deddy Lavid, the co-founder and CEO of Cyvers, a company specializing in Web3 security.

The cybersecurity expert told CryptoMoon:

“To safeguard their assets, investors should verify communications, enable two-factor authentication, and avoid public WiFi for sensitive activities. Awareness of holiday-themed phishing tactics is crucial, along with tools like real-time monitoring to flag suspicious behaviors promptly.”

Additionally, it’s crucial for users to become more vigilant about the rising threat of confirming potentially harmful cryptocurrency transactions.

When using blockchain, it’s crucial to carefully review transactions and test them prior to signing, just to make sure you don’t accidentally approve harmful actions. Staying alert and practicing strong security measures is particularly important during these potentially risky times,” Lavid emphasized.

Contrary to expectations that the holiday season might bring more crypto hacks, there has actually been a 15% decrease in such incidents compared to the same period last year, with hackers managing to steal only $1.48 billion so far this year, down from $1.73 billion by Nov. 28, 2023.

In terms of significant hacks that occurred last November, the Thala hack, amounting to $25.5 million, was the largest. Fortunately, the affected protocol managed to restore all the assets that were stolen due to the farming vulnerability.

Since June, the total value of losses in the cryptocurrency sector has exceeded $19 billion due to approximately 785 reported hacking incidents and exploits that have occurred over the past 13 years.

2024-12-03 16:54

Crypto phishing scams to rise during holiday shopping season — Cyvers

Crypto phishing scams to surge in December — Cyvers

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