The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has issued a warning about an increase in impersonation scams that are targeting crypto investors. These scams often involve individuals pretending to be government employees to trick victims into sending money or cryptocurrency.
Rise in Impersonation Scams
On June 12, CISA alerted the public about these scams, emphasizing that its staff will never ask for money transfers, whether in cash, cryptocurrency, or gift cards. CISA advised those who suspect they are targeted by such scammers to:
- Not pay the caller
- Take note of the phone number
- Hang up immediately
- Validate the contact by calling CISA directly
Growing Threat in the Crypto Ecosystem
Phil Larratt, Chainalysis’ director of investigations, responded to Cointelegraph’s inquiries, noting that scams remain a significant threat to the cryptocurrency ecosystem. He highlighted that scams generated at least $4.6 billion in revenue in 2023, making them one of the biggest drivers of crypto-based crime.
Impersonation scams, in particular, had a severe impact on victims, with an average payment size of $948, as reported in the Chainalysis 2024 Crypto Crime Report.
Prevention and Mitigation
Larratt emphasized the importance of preventive measures, starting with public education. He stated, “This is critical because once crypto assets are transferred to a third party, there is no longer control of that asset without the private keys of the third party’s funds.”
Common Scam Tactics
Among the various tactics used by scammers, Larratt highlighted two prominent methods: approval phishing and crypto drainers.
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Approval Phishing
Approval phishing scammers create fake crypto apps to target a large number of users. This method has also been adopted by romance scammers, known as “pig butchering” scammers, leading to significant financial losses.
Crypto drainer operators promote fake Web3 sites on platforms like Discord and compromised social media accounts. They lure victims into connecting their crypto wallets to these sites and use approval phishing techniques to gain control over the funds in the wallets.
Larratt stressed the importance of implementing security measures, such as Web3 security extensions, to combat these scam tactics. These measures can help protect both Web3 projects and individual users from falling victim to these sophisticated scams.
