How Bitcoin Phishing Scams Steal Millions

Phishing comes in many forms. The main goal of any cybercrime is to generate money from double-dealing. When a hacker targets an international business and steals their data, there is a financial incentive that pushes them to do so. As cryptocurrency becomes a more recognized financial medium, attackers are actively turning to targeting them with digital wallets.

By 2021, crypto fraudsters took $14 billion. Quite simply, as Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies become more valuable, they become a bigger target for hackers and fraudsters. With this in mind, those who actively buy, sell and trade cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin must be aware of the risks they are taking.

In this article, to reduce the chance of you falling for a Bitcoin phishing scam, we’ve created this article to show you the most common Bitcoin phishing messages you’re likely to come across. By learning about the forms phishing emails take, you’ll be better prepared to recognize them and put a stop to them before someone makes off with your hard-earned crypto.

What are the most common Bitcoin phishing scams?

When creating phishing emails that trick cryptocurrency owners into accidentally giving away information about their private wallets, the message often comes from a financial service. Whether it’s impersonating a service or a fake exchange reaching out via email, attackers use a variety of strategies to try to trick the public.

When you open your inbox, try scanning for the following emails, as they may be a sign that someone is trying to steal your information:

• Password is reset
• Imitation
• False exchanges
• Phishing websites
• Scam Coins

Let’s break down these commonly used methods.

Reset password

Password resets are far from exclusive to cryptocurrency scams, but remain one of the most pressing forms of scams used when trying to steal Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. By copying the setup of an email from an exchange like Binance, a hacker can duplicate a password reset almost identically.

They send this email out and notify victims that they need to reset their passwords. Within this email, the reset link will go to the attacker’s own website, where they can collect the old password and use it to access accounts.

Especially with Bitcoin and other cryptos, where a transaction is quite irreversible, if a hacker gains access to your account for just a few minutes, they can do irreparable damage. It’s always a good idea to verify where the password reset emails are coming from. Even better, just reset your password by navigating from Google to the actual site, never directly via an email.

Imitation

In the online world, it is incredibly easy to create fake profiles, find pictures online and construct a completely false identity. Over the past few months, the cryptocurrency world has seen many fake accounts create profiles, gain an audience, host a scam giveaway, and then disappear without a trace.

Whether it’s through private messaging and asking for crypto or hosting free giveaways that inject malware into computer systems, always double-check who you’re talking to online.

While an extreme form of impersonation, back in 2020, a group of hackers managed to gain access to a number of notable figures on Twitter, such as Barack Obama, Jeff Bezos, Kim Kardashian and more. From these accounts, they then tweeted a Bitcoin scam that saw Twitter users send over $110,000 USD in transactions.

Always be wary of things that seem too good to be true when it comes to crypto.

False exchanges

Over the past 18 months, seemingly hundreds of DeFi exchanges have emerged. A market that was once controlled by a few major players is now saturated with exchanges from all over the world. With this, it is not uncommon to find an email in your inbox offering to help you sell or buy Bitcoin at great prices.

Unfortunately, many of these emails will be phishing attempts, where the fake exchange is just trying to gather information to take over a user’s wallet. Try to stick to sites you know are reputable, and always navigate to them via Google rather than email.

Scam Coins

Although not directly related to Bitcoin, a large number of scam ICOs have been launched throughout blockchain’s history. This was at its worst back in 2018, when 80% of all released cryptocurrencies turned out to be scams. Investing in coins at a very early stage, especially when the project seems to lack a lot of documentation, is not the smartest idea.

Although it’s tempting when you see promises of 100x returns, always be sure to research any project thoroughly before actually committing to investing. Start with their white paper, read through the fundamentals and tokenomics, and try to figure out if this project is actually worth investing in or just seems like hot air.

Similarly, if an email arrives in your inbox offering an airdrop in exchange for a small Bitcoin fee – don’t jump at the opportunity. Airdrops should never involve giving away details about your account, no matter how great the opportunity may seem to you on the outside. Remember that phishing emails are incredibly common – you’re more likely to come across a scam than a genuine crypto opportunity, unfortunately.

Final thoughts

Cryptocurrency, even in 2022, is still full of scams, hacks and people with bad intentions. Due to the enormous value of this industry, especially leading cryptos like Bitcoin, attackers will stop at nothing to gain access to user wallets and exploit them.

When you read through your emails, you are carefully walking the front lines, where the vast majority of cryptocurrency scams and exploits occur. What may seem like a simple email may actually have much worse intentions. Always take your time, read carefully and never click on links from companies you don’t recognize – your Bitcoin could be at stake.