Due to the rising popularity of cryptocurrency, the cybercriminals are taking advantage of the potential victims because they are not technologically smart yet. From 2020 to 2021 as the price of Bitcoin went up, so did the cyber-attacks. The number of cybercrimes increased even more when companies started accepting payments in cryptocurrencies. Since cryptocurrency is gaining more popularity, people are buying crypto currency but aren’t aware enough about how to beware of cybercriminals and scammers.

Since cryptocurrency assets exist in online environments that are independent from the rules of banks and governments, they are easily accessible. However, since cryptocurrency is easy to access, it also exposes us to a higher risk of cybercrime. Cyber hackers can hack data from trading platforms and steal information. They use tactics such as phishing, ransomware attacks, crypto jacking, and extortions to steal cryptocurrency. The most common exchange in ransomware attacks for cybercriminals is cryptocurrency. They find it easiest because they can easily transform cryptocurrency into traditional money without being recognised. The ease and privacy of cryptocurrency makes the domain easier for cybercriminals to play with.

Below mentioned are some common pitfalls that we all need to know before investing in cryptocurrency.

Phishing

It is highly likely that cybercriminals can use phishing techniques to either drain your bank accounts or steal your cryptocurrency. Cyber threats are exactly why people use two-factor authentication, but it not so simple, so this is where cybercriminals use reverse proxy phishing, also known as session hijacking. This technique is used to bypass two-factor authentication and steal people’s money by creating fake domains and track people that pass through those domains and when the victims enter their credentials, and that is where the server copies the credentials and logs in to the real page. There are four kinds of phishing attacks such as spear phishing, DNS hijacking, phishing bots, and fake browser extensions.

To save yourself from such attackers, research and educate yourself about hot and cold wallets. There is plenty of information on the internet on how to save yourselves from cyberattacks and how to save your money online. The best internet to have to secure your accounts is TDS Internet. TDS Internet is a telecom internet that provides you a range of internet security optionsandalso comes in a budget.

Crypto Jacking

Some cyber criminals do not directly steal from wallets, instead they steal the processing powerof your devices or machines to mine their own coins. Botnets usually carry out hidden mining, which happens via malicious links created by the hacker. The malware created by the hacker runs in the victim’s machine in the background and secretly mine currency. These miners go undetected for years because they are hidden in the victim’s machine. High-level intelligence and programming is needed to create these tools and due to the secrecy of the tool, these criminals remain undetected for longer times. All the attacker needs to do to get in someone’s system is to get the victim to download the software. These botnet miners are marketed on the internet as “passive income” to attract people.

The botnet miners do not affect you directly and might not seem unsafe, but they lower the processing efficiency of your machines, which mean if you are in a corporate setting, your machine’s productivity is lowered. To detect these, keep a check on your CPU’s usage, and how it reacts to the usage.

Cryptocurrency Clipping

This is a fairly simple way of stealing money from your device. Cryptocurrency clipping in simple words is, when you copy and paste wallet address of the receiver while sending money, a third party app from your phone gives access to the hacker who is tracking your phone. The hacker will copy his own address through you and paste that in the receiver’s place. When you don’t double check the credentials while transferring the money, you might end up sending it in the wrong place. This is the simplest way of your money being stolen. The least you can do to save yourself from this is to double check the address and avoid downloading unauthentic third party apps.

Dusting Attacks

A dusting attack is a new way of an attack where the hackers and scammers try to break in the privacy of the cryptocurrency users by sending tiny amounts to their accounts. They then track the users’ transactional activities and then uncover the identity of the companies or people behind these wallets. The best way to save yourself from such dusting attacks is to generate new wallets for each transaction and keep a note of every single penny.

As technology evolves and cryptocurrency is gaining more and more popularity, cyber hackers are getting more efficient too. To save yourself from such hackers and attacks, educate yourself on different possible attacks and possible ways to remain on the safer side.