Crypto
Cryptocurrency-Linked Scams Surge in 2024 as Cybercriminals Shift Tactics – Brave New Coin
![Cryptocurrency-Linked Scams Surge in 2024 as Cybercriminals Shift Tactics – Brave New Coin Cryptocurrency-Linked Scams Surge in 2024 as Cybercriminals Shift Tactics – Brave New Coin](https://bravenewcoin.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Crypto-Scams-Report.jpg)
A new report from Chainalysis paints a troubling picture of the evolving landscape of cryptocurrency-related scams. The research reveals that crypto scams have become the dominant force in illicit digital asset activity in 2024, with a staggering 43% of these illicit inflows going to wallets that were activated this year alone.
This points to a worrying surge in new scams, particularly alarming when compared to 2022, the next highest year, where only 29.9% of year-to-date flows went to newly activated wallets. This dramatic rise signals that cybercriminals are aggressively adapting their strategies, creating a constant influx of new scams to ensnare unsuspecting victims. Anecdotally Brave New Coin can also confirm a marked increase in both the number of scams pitched to the company in 2024, and in their level of sophistication.
Shifting Tactics from Ponzi Schemes to Targeted Scams
While old favorites like ‘cloud mining’ scams are ongoing, the report also highlights a shift in scammer tactics, moving away from complex, long-running Ponzi schemes to shorter, more targeted campaigns. ‘Romance scams,’ where perpetrators build trust with victims online before defrauding them, stand out as particularly damaging. Chainalysis data suggests that this type of scam has exploded by 85x since 2020, with average payment sizes resulting in devastating financial and emotional impact on victims.
“From 2022 to 2024, just one such organization, a popular fraud shop, received $10.5 million from scammers known to perpetrate romance scams,” the report states. “With this shop selling ‘seasoned’ social media profiles for anything between $5 to $20 per account, scammers could have purchased between 525K and 2.1 million social media profiles they could then use to target victims.” This thriving black market of stolen or fake social media profiles provides scammers with the tools they need to build convincing online personas and prey on vulnerable individuals seeking connection.
Shorter Scam Lifespans Indicate Rapid Cybercrime Evolution
Further evidence of this shift towards shorter-term scams is seen in the shrinking average lifespan of such operations. The average duration of scams has dropped dramatically, from 271 days for scams initiated in 2020 to just 42 days for scams launched in 2024. This shortened timeframe suggests that scammers are prioritizing quick profits over building elaborate schemes, likely due to increased awareness and law enforcement efforts targeting large-scale operations.
“Taken together, these two data points strongly suggest that scammers are pivoting away from elaborate Ponzi schemes that cast a wide net, to more targeted campaigns like romance scams or address poisonings,” said Eric Jardine, Cybercrime Research Lead at Chainalysis. Jardine emphasizes that this evolution in tactics requires a corresponding evolution in security measures and awareness campaigns to effectively combat these new threats.
What Is Crypto Wallet Address Poisoning?
Address poisoning refers to a tactic used by scammers in which they send small, often worthless, transactions to a victim’s cryptocurrency wallet. These transactions are designed to ‘poison’ the wallet by creating a record that appears in the victim’s transaction history, often mimicking legitimate wallet addresses from an exchange or other entity a victim may be interacting with.
Scammers then hope that victims will accidentally copy the poisoned address from their transaction history when trying to send funds later. Since the malicious address looks similar to the legitimate one, victims may unknowingly send their cryptocurrency to the scammer’s address instead of their intended recipient’s address.
Investment Scams Continue to Dominate Crypto-Related Fraud
A recent FBI report notes a 45% surge in cryptocurrency-related fraud losses in the United States during 2023, reaching a staggering $5.6 billion. This spike coincided with a rally in cryptocurrency prices, attracting renewed attention from criminal actors eager to capitalize on the renewed public interest and potential for large financial gains.
Investment scams were the most prevalent and damaging type of crypto fraud, accounting for roughly $3.9 billion in losses. The FBI emphasized the decentralized and irreversible nature of cryptocurrency transactions as key factors exploited by scammers, enabling them to facilitate large-scale, cross-border transactions quickly and with relative anonymity. These characteristics, often touted as advantages of cryptocurrency, unfortunately also create opportunities for criminals to operate with reduced risk of detection and accountability.
Heightened Vigilance and Collaboration Needed to Combat Scams
The FBI urges individuals to exercise caution and vigilance when dealing with cryptocurrency investments and to be wary of unsolicited offers promising unrealistic returns. Red flags to watch out for include high-pressure sales tactics, requests for personal information, and demands for payment in cryptocurrency. “Scams targeting investors who use cryptocurrency are skyrocketing in severity and complexity,” said FBI Director Christopher Wray. “The best way to help stop these crimes is for people to report them,” he added, emphasizing the need for public awareness and cooperation to combat the growing threat of crypto-related scams. Reporting suspicious activity, even if no financial loss occurred, can help law enforcement agencies track trends and develop strategies to combat these evolving scams.
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Crypto
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (AMD): Hedge Funds Are Bullish On This Cryptocurrency Stock
We recently compiled a list of the 20 Best Cryptocurrency Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) stands against the other cryptocurrency stocks.
A Review of the Crypto World: Latest Updates
Crypto has emerged as a major political issue in the US with the campaigns for election going on. Head of Firmwide research Galaxy Digital Alex Thorn called August a rough and seasonally bad week for Bitcoin. He mentioned how eight out of the eleven prior Augusts witnessed the major coin trading down. However, political events have also played a role in the crypto landscape.
In Thorn’s opinion, most people view Trump’s victory as bullish for the crypto market. Trump who is now running for President brought the hopes of the crypto world higher by promising to deliver a plan to make the United States the ‘crypto capital of the planet’. Crypto became an even hotter topic as Kamala Haris simultaneously supported policies for the expansion of the industry. In the opinion of Thorn, most people view Trump’s victory as bullish for the crypto market. He predicts crypto will run quite higher if Trump ends up winning the election based on an anticipated easing of the regulations. On the other hand, he expects the victory of Harris to be more neutral even for the industry since those advising her belong to the Biden administration on crypto policy.
Looking forward to September which is a seasonally weak month for crypto too, the next months including October, November, and December are crypto’s most bullish months based on the seasonality factor. Regardless of the highly awaited Fed interest rate cuts just ahead of us, the crypto market investors still remain concerned as JPMorgan’s Head of Global and European Equity Strategy dismissed the potential of a crypto bull market. While September has been a historically worst month for US stocks, the upcoming rate cut might be an outlier in history.
In an interview with CNBC, Anthony Pompliano, Professional Capital Management CEO, talked about the recent price moves in Bitcoin. The German government offloading Bitcoin through as many exchanges and the Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox unloading coins onto the market are two important events defining this supply. Pompliano refers to Bitcoin as really illiquid with many Bitcoin holders having a long-term view of it. At the start of 2024, the Bitcoin amount that had not moved in more than a year was over 70%. Some of it started to get distributed as prices rose, as expected in a bull market. Although Pompliano expects this percentage to drop to 50% to 55% but still at least half of the Bitcoin would still be in the hands of people who have an over 10-year time horizon. Thus, the question revolves around whether these hands are strong enough to outlast the aforementioned two events. Pompliano finally states time as the only catalyst for Bitcoin rather than a pro-crypto candidate in the upcoming US elections. While the summer season is a bit slow, prices typically go back up in September and beyond.
Our Methodology:
In order to compile a list of the 20 best cryptocurrency stocks to buy according to hedge funds, we sifted through ETFs and online rankings to compile a preliminary list of 40 companies involved in the crypto space. Moving on, we shortlisted the top 20 stocks from our list which had the highest number of hedge fund holders. The 20 best cryptocurrency stocks to buy according to hedge funds have been arranged in ascending order of the number of hedge fund holders they have, as of Q2 2024.
At Insider Monkey we are obsessed with the stocks that hedge funds pile into. The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A close up of a complex looking PCB board with several intergrated semiconductor parts.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 108
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) serves as the high-performance and adaptive computing leader. The firm was founded as a Silicon Valley startup in 1969. It manufactures computing equipment, including GPUs, commonly used in Bitcoin mining. The firm operates through multiple segments including Data Center, Client, Gaming, and Embedded.
Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) is effectively managing the aforementioned segments together. Due to the data center segment revenue growing 115% year-over-year to a record $2.8 billion, the company reported strong revenue and earnings growth during the fiscal second quarter. The reduction in gaming and embedded product sales was offset by the sales of the data center and client processors. With data center product sales accounting for almost 50% of overall sales during the quarter, EPS grew by 19%. Hence, the strong data center and client segment performance has positioned the firm to deliver accelerated revenue in the year’s second half.
The leadership product portfolio, expanding customer and partner ecosystem, and strong financial performance make the stock promising. Over the preceding 5 years, the firm has successfully raised its top line by 31.70% and its bottom line by 47.95%. As of Q2, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) is held by 108 hedge funds while Fisher Asset Management is the largest shareholder in the company with a stake worth $3.7 billion.
Overall AMD ranks 4th on our list of the best cryptocurrency stocks to buy according to hedge funds. While we acknowledge the potential of AMD as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued AI stock that is more promising than AMD but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: $30 Trillion Opportunity: 15 Best Humanoid Robot Stocks to Buy According to Morgan Stanley and Jim Cramer Says NVIDIA ‘Has Become A Wasteland’.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Crypto
FBI issues first cryptocurrency fraud report, Pennsylvania named among states with most money lost
![FBI issues first cryptocurrency fraud report, Pennsylvania named among states with most money lost FBI issues first cryptocurrency fraud report, Pennsylvania named among states with most money lost](https://assets2.cbsnewsstatic.com/hub/i/r/2022/06/15/c0324862-dbf0-4c6c-80be-6080cc3e605d/thumbnail/1200x630/1e3145d06dda543e3a8665687f91b2ed/cbsn-fusion-market-fraud-and-skepticism-fueling-the-crash-of-crypto-thumbnail-1067776-640x360.jpg?v=631cf5f2b4e8db7f9bc428589402864d)
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The Federal Bureau of Investigation has issued its first-ever cryptocurrency fraud report and Pennsylvania ranked among the states with the highest number of complaints and money lost.
Overall, the FBI said that more than $5.6 billion in estimated losses occurred in 2023 in connection with cryptocurrency.
Here in Pennsylvania, the commonwealth ranked 8th among stats for the number of complaints with 1,773, and 9th in money lost with a total of more than $123 million.
The FBI’s data showed that in 2023 investment scams that were linked to cryptocurrency were among the most pervasive along with tech support scams, data breach scams, and romance crimes.
They added that the decentralized nature of cryptocurrency and the speed of transferring value around the world makes “cryptocurrency an attractive vehicle from criminals and creates unique challenges in recovering stolen funds.”
They’re warning people to be vigilant when contacted by potential scammers, saying that criminals will try to create a sense of urgency and isolation when they make contact. The scammers also have been known to use websites that mimic real financial institutions in order to project a sense of legitimacy, as well as use suspicious-looking mobile apps for investment tools.
Finally, they said that no law enforcement will ever call citizens and ask for payment in cryptocurrency.
You can read the FBI’s full cryptocurrency fraud report on their website at this link.
Crypto
Singapore drops cryptocurrency use for gambling citing money laundering concerns
![Singapore drops cryptocurrency use for gambling citing money laundering concerns Singapore drops cryptocurrency use for gambling citing money laundering concerns](https://crypto.news/app/uploads/2024/05/crypto-news-Solana-Breakpoint-2024-Singapore-option03.webp)
Singaporean regulators have no plans to allow cryptocurrency use for gambling due to the risks of money laundering.
During a Sept. 10 parliamentary address, Ms Sun Xueling, Minister of State for the Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Social and Family Development, clarified Singapore’s regulatory stance on using cryptocurrencies in casino gambling. The minister’s remarks were made during the wrap-up speech for the Second Reading of the Casino Control (Amendment) Bill.
Introduced on July 4, 2024, the bill aims to future-proof the framework governing casino gambling activities in Singapore, while giving the Gambling Regulatory Authority the power to prescribe any wagering instrument as chips for casino gambling.
However, the minister has stressed that cryptocurrencies will not be part of this expanded scope.
While the amendments to Singapore’s Casino Control Act were promoted as a step toward “future-proofing the regime” and establishing a framework for “cashless gambling,” the Minister of State firmly ruled out the use of cryptocurrencies citing money laundering concerns.
“GRA has no intention of allowing cryptocurrency to be used as chips for casino gambling as this presents money laundering risks.“
Ms Sun Xueling, Minister of State for the Ministry of Home Affairs
Singapore’s exclusion of cryptocurrencies from its casino operations aligns with a growing recognition of the risks they pose in the realm of money laundering.
According to a January 2024 report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, cryptocurrencies and casinos have increasingly become tools for laundering illicit funds, with criminal networks exploiting the anonymity and lack of regulation associated with digital currencies to obscure the origins of illicit funds, using online casinos as conduits.
“Organized crime groups have converged where they see vulnerabilities, and casinos and crypto have proven the point of least resistance.”
Jeremy Douglas, UNODC Regional Representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific
A growing trend
Boycotting cryptocurrencies for gambling is part of a broader trend, as seen in Australia, where the government recently banned cryptocurrencies for online betting, including digital wallets and credit-linked cards, to help individuals maintain control over their gambling habits.
Similarly, Brazil has also banned the use of cryptocurrencies for gambling payments in April 2024, targeting digital assets like Bitcoin to enhance transparency and reduce the potential for money laundering.
Nevertheless, the global crypto gambling market tells a different story altogether. As previously reported by crypto.news, the crypto gambling market almost doubled to over $70 billion in the first half of 2024, with projections pointing toward a staggering $150 billion by 2030.
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