Cryptocurrency holders face many risks. Phishing, malware, social engineering, ... Hackers do not lack imagination when it comes to finding tricks allowing them to grab the precious digital assets of their victims.
It is therefore necessary, more than ever, to redouble our vigilance.
Especially since these scams are sometimes where we do not expect them.
Generally, users think they are safe by downloading an app referenced on App Stores from Google and Apple. Many people assume that these applications have had to be thoroughly checked before being referenced.
But this is apparently far from the case ... and some Internet users have unfortunately paid the price.
False applications ... but real consequences
If the App Store and the Google Play Store are both likely to host fraudulent applications, it seems that Android users are the first concerned.
One of the most striking cases? This application, which has managed to fool several thousand users. It masquerades as the official application of a famous trading platform, Poloniex, by presenting itself as "Poloniex ® Offical App".
We understand that some users, who would have a quick glance at the application before clicking on the button "Install", could be had. Because beyond the name of the application, we can find the official logo of Poloniex, as well as screenshots from the exchange platform.
But looking closer, we can see many mistakes, but especially a mean note strangely low - a single star, the average left by 171 users.
The majority of Internet users know that they have to think twice before clicking on a link sent by e-mail. But they do not necessarily have the habit of being so vigilant when they install a mobile application from a trusted platform.
If one sticks to the many comments left by angry users, the "Poloniex ® Offical App" seems to have only one objective: to seize the accounts of customers of Poloniex, and thus to access their digital currency.
Whose fault is it ?
False application poloniex screenshotBpaalances?
But this application is far from being the only one to be fraudulent - there are at least five such applications, bearing the name "Poloniex", on the Google Play platform.
Most disturbing is the fact that two of them ("Poloniex ® Offical App", but also "" Poloniex - Bitcoin / Digital Asset Exchange ") have managed to rush into the top three results of search "poloniex":
If these hackers relied on Poloniex, it is primarily because the platform does not offer an official mobile application. It is thus easier to encourage users to install the application litigious they developed.
If Poloniex decided one day to create its own application, as some of its competitors like Coinbase or Bitfinex do, it would probably allow to strongly limit the number of downloads obtained by these contentious applications.
But one might also wonder why Poloniex does not officially speak about these applications, which are aimed at its own customers. Society rarely tweets, and has not recently mentioned this type of problem:
And we can not find more information on the official website:
It is also possible to mention the responsibility of the Play Store, which could remove these software - or at least explain to users how to avoid downloading "fake" applications.
Many risks
It would seem that scammers are studying all possible methods of attack - methods that could enable them to increase their digital wealth at the expense of their victims.
It is known that other scams, mainly from India, would provide false telephone support to Coinbase and Kraken customers. These correspond to the famous scams with false technical support, which require users to call a number to "repair" their computer - but that will actually seek to obtain certain confidential information.
But the problem is not limited to the ecosystem of crypto-currencies. Many users have downloaded a fake version of WhatsApp on the Play Store. At the same time, the Bankbot malware, which aims to seize the bank details of its victims, was deleted twice by Google, before reappearing under the name "Crypto currencies market prices".
Be vigilant
Users who install the application of an exchange platform, a "price tracking" application or a digital wallet are requested to use the links from the corresponding official sites. It is therefore not recommended to use search engines from the Play Store or the App Store to obtain such applications.
But you have to be careful ... even when you click on links offered by an "official" site. Some holders of BTC, who had clicked on a link offered on the official website of Bitcoin Gold, were recently victims of a theft of their digital currency. This link led them to a wallet developed by a third-party developer, which aimed to steal the digital currency.
In addition, a security company, High-Tech Bridge, recently reported that more than 90% of the most popular cryptocurrency applications, available on the Play Store, would have security vulnerabilities. Thus, 94% of the applications would not use current encryption methods, 66% would not use any, and 44% would store "hard-coded passwords" in a "text" form.
