According to report from Kaspersky Lab, an anti-virus and internet security firm, scammers made off with over $2.3 million during the second quarter of 2018.  

A popular scheme for these phishers and scammers is to use fake websites and social media accounts to create a faux ICO to lure investors.  Cybercriminals present a seemingly great opportunity to grow their initial investment exponentially and attract possibly uneducated investors or those who are new to blockchain and cryptocurrency to send them real coins or tokens in exchange for useless utility tokens without a platform or even nothing at all.  

The most popular cryptocurrency involved in these scams is Ethereum.  According to Kaspersky, Ethereum is the most requested coin by hackers because it has the most projects creating new platforms based on its protocol.  New ICOs are being listed everyday and scammers hope to blend in with the legitimate companies in order to get people to send them their ETH.

Kaspersky thinks the spread of cryptocurrency will require new laws and social norms in order to adjust to the new processes and unfortunately, the new crimes that can come along with the new technology.  

“The permanence of attacks targeting financial organizations reflects the fact that more and more people are using electronic money,” Nadezhda Demidova, lead web content analyst said in a press release. Demidova went on to explain that investors and traders that are new to the cryptocurrency industry must educate themselves and be aware that bad actors are out there and ready to separate them from their money.  

On the road to mass adoption, the cryptocurrency space will have to adapt to the growing practice cybercrime and adjust ideas and practices to ensure scammers can’t derail the spread of blockchain technology.

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