South Korean authorities have arrested 215 individuals in connection with a massive cryptocurrency investment scam worth an estimated 325.6 billion won – around $232 million. The arrests, led by the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crime Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Southern Provincial Police, involve employees of a fraudulent investment consulting firm and its founder, who happens...Read More
A high-profile Russian influencer, popularly known as the “Queen of Crypto,” is under scrutiny for allegedly defrauding investors out of $22 million. According to various reports in the Russian press, Valeria Fedyakina, who made a name for herself as “Bitmama,” is accused of operating a pyramid scheme that ensnared multiple victims in only two months....Read More
Grant Colthup, the former CEO of ACCE Australia, is facing a single fraud charge following an investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC). Colthup, who appeared in the Magistrates Court at Ipswich, Queensland, was charged with embezzling $1.47 million (2.2 million Australian dollars) from a customer. $1.5M Bitcoin Payment Goes Missing From May...Read More
The cryptocurrency sector comprises various legitimate projects and innovations but is also rife with fraudulent schemes. One such scam reportedly pocketed billions of euros from its unsuspecting clients after using popular football players as backers. Painful Losses Following the Footballers’ Involvement El Diario – a Spanish digital newspaper known for its investigative journalism – recently...Read More
A sponsored Google ad claiming to promote Sony’s blockchain project, Soneium, has been exposed as a crypto wallet drainer. This incident adds to the growing threat of wallet drainers that have plagued the crypto space. Google Ad Scam Targets Soneium’s Users In a post shared on October 22 via X by blockchain security firm Scam...Read More
The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) has dismantled a massive cross-border fraud operation that used deep fake technology to con men into phony cryptocurrency investments. The scam targeted men through fake online romances, with the victims reportedly being conned out of approximately $46 million. 27 Arrested in Raid on Fraud Center Local media reports revealed...Read More
On October 15, 2024, Juan Tacuri, a senior promoter of the cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme Forcount, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison and one year of supervised release. The Florida resident was also ordered to forfeit a home bought with scam proceeds, $3.6 million in assets, and pay an equivalent amount in restitution to...Read More
Chirag Tomar, a 31-year-old Indian citizen, was sentenced to five years in federal prison for orchestrating a cryptocurrency fraud scheme that defrauded hundreds of victims out of more than $20 million. U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell handed down the sentence, which also included two years of supervised release. Scammers Imitate Coinbase to Steal Millions...Read More
Three crypto companies and 15 individuals have been charged with extensive fraud and market manipulation. This follows an unprecedented investigation by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which involved creating a new digital token to help expose criminal activity in the sector. Federal prosecutors in Boston announced charges against Gotbit, ZM Quant, and CLS...Read More
An 86-year-old former attorney, David Kagel, has been sentenced to five years of probation for organizing a multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of nearly $15 million. The judgment, filed on October 8 in a Las Vegas federal court, also requires him to pay $14 million in restitution to his victims. $15M Crypto...Read More
U.S. authorities, including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Department of Justice (DOJ), have charged Gotbit and four other crypto firms with widespread market manipulation. The charges also roped in several individuals who worked for the offending organizations. Market Makers Accused of Running Wash Trading Scheme According...Read More
A recent cyberattack has led to an unsuspecting crypto investor reportedly losing 15,079 fwdETH, worth roughly $36 million. In the incident, described by security experts as a permit phishing scam, the bad actor tricked the user into unknowingly signing a malicious signature, which gave the thief full access to the individual’s funds. How it Happened...Read More
Cardi B, took to her X account to promote a new meme coin named after her iconic track. However, there have been concerns surrounding the promotion, with security experts suggesting the account may have been compromised. Cardi B Shares $WAP Video The rapper, who has been in the news lately after claims emerged that she...Read More
WalletConnect has warned crypto users about a fake app previously available on the Google Play Store. In a September 29 post on X, the organization behind the open-source protocol that enables secure connections between crypto wallets and decentralized applications (dApps) said the offending app has since been removed from Google Play, but not before it...Read More
The person behind 2023’s Euler Finance hack has congratulated the Penpie exploiter after the latter moved the bulk of the funds they stole to Tornado Cash. The Penpie thief transferred the money even as the decentralized finance (DeFi) platform pleaded for the funds to be returned in exchange for a bounty. The $27M Penpie Protocol...Read More
Last month, the crypto space experienced $313 million in losses due to over ten different hacks. Of the total stolen funds, 93.5% were lost in two large phishing attacks that occurred during that time. August Cases According to a post by blockchain security firm PeckShield, the two incidents combined for a loss of about $293.4...Read More
Australians reportedly lost at least AUD 180 million (approximately $122 million) to cryptocurrency investment frauds over the past year. Victims under 50 now make up around 60% of scam reports, overtaking older Australians, who are typically considered more vulnerable to such projects. Crypto-Based Investment Scams in Australia The data, gathered by the Australian Cyber Security...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has brought charges against two brothers for running a $60 million Ponzi scheme. Notably, the complaint was filed on August 26 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia in Atlanta. SEC Freezes Assets in Scam According to the regulator’s filing, Jonathan Adam and...Read More
The X account of French football star Kylian Mbappe was reportedly hacked on August 29, with the attackers posting multiple messages promoting a suspicious cryptocurrency named ‘$MBAPPE.’ The posts, which also included opinions on contentious topics such as the Israel-Palestine conflict, caught the attention of many, leading to significant financial losses for some. Investor Loses...Read More
A former Kansas bank executive was sentenced to 293 months in federal prison for embezzling $47.1 million in a cryptocurrency fraud scheme that led to the collapse of Heartland Tri-State Bank (HTSB). Shan Hanes, 53, the former CEO of HTSB, pleaded guilty to one count of embezzlement by a bank officer. $47M Crypto Fraud Court...Read More
Binance announced that it has prevented over $2.4 billion in losses from potential scams and fraudulent activities that could have impacted more than 1.2 million users from January to July 2024 owing to its risk management measures. According to the official press release shared with CryptoPotato, Binance employs an internal risk engine that provides 24/7...Read More
On Tuesday, a cryptocurrency whale suffered a loss, with approximately $55.4 million worth of Dai stablecoin stolen in a phishing attack. According to the blockchain security firm CertiK, the attacker likely used a phishing tool known as Inferno Drainer to gain access to the whale’s externally owned account (EOA). Inferno Drainer Phishing Attack The incident...Read More
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) announced today that it has dismantled over 600 cryptocurrency scams in the past 12 months. This announcement comes as ASIC marks the first anniversary of its investment scam disruption initiative, revealing that more than 7,300 phishing and fraudulent websites have been taken down over the past year. Australians...Read More
The British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC) has determined that the cryptocurrency trading platform ezBtc and its founder, David Smillie, defrauded investors of approximately $9.5 million, equivalent to 13 million Canadian dollars, in crypto assets. The BCSC’s investigation uncovered that ezBtc and Smillie engaged in misleading and deceptive practices, misappropriating funds intended for customer accounts. Crypto...Read More
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed charges against NovaTech Ltd. and its principals, Cynthia and Eddy Petion, for allegedly organizing a crypto fraud that defrauded over 200,000 investors worldwide, including many within the Haitian-American community. The SEC’s complaint details that NovaTech, under the leadership of the Petions, was promoted as a multi-level...Read More
Blockchain investigator ZachXBT has released information regarding North Korean developers who allegedly stole $1.3 million from a project’s treasury. The theft was carried out when the devs, who had been hired using fake identities, injected malicious code into the system, which allowed the unauthorized transfer of funds. ZachXBT Uncovers Crypto Workers Scheme ZachXBT explained on...Read More
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has uncovered that over 2,000 cryptocurrency wallets owned by locals were compromised by offshore scammers, putting millions of dollars in digital assets at risk. This discovery emerged from Operation Spincaster, a global initiative against crypto fraud spearheaded by Chainalysis and locally managed by the AFP-led Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre...Read More
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Nader Al-Naji with orchestrating a multi-million-dollar fraudulent crypto asset scheme involving the social media platform BitClout and its native token BTCLT. The securities regulator’s complaint revealed that Al-Naji raised over $257 million through unregistered offers and sales of BTCLT in November...Read More
Prominent on-chain sleuth ZachXBT has recently uncovered compelling evidence linking convicted UK hacker Gurv – whose real name is Gurvinder Bhangu – to the recent compromises of American actress Sydney Sweeney’s and ‘Breaking Bad’ actor Bob Odenkirk’s X accounts. This resulted in over $530,000 stolen through Solana meme coin scams. SWEENEY Pump and Dump On...Read More
American multinational investment giant – BlackRock – has recently reported a significant increase in investment-related scams, particularly those that direct individuals to crypto investment websites or social media platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram. The company has cautioned its investors when engaging with individuals, websites, or social media platforms using BlackRock’s brand to offer training or...Read More
