FBI warns digital currency exchanges and crypto owners of possible threats – Bitcoin News

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The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) this week issued an industry-wide warning of possible attacks on crypto exchanges and holders. The institution said that there are threats that actively stalk virtual asset platforms in order to take hold of those assets, causing financial losses in the process. Sim swapping, account theft, and tech support personnel are the means to accomplish these attacks.

FBI anticipates cryptocurrency attacks

The FBI issued a warning against upcoming attacks on exchanges and cryptocurrency holders last week. The warning was broadcast using TLP, which was designed to broadcast the desired information to certain groups. It has received the green designation, which means the FBI allows peers and partner organizations in the crypto community to share this information.

The FBI says there are groups that actively track vulnerabilities in these companies to take action. He explains that these groups use a bunch of techniques to achieve these means. These techniques include sim swapping, tech support fraud, and account theft. The warning also details a few recommendations for institutions to keep their holdings safe: monitor incoming mail and monitor accounts for unusual movements.

The FBI advises cryptocurrency holders to always use two-factor authentication and be aware of the information they share on social media. However, it is very difficult to prevent sim swap attacks.

Sim swap

Sim swap attacks are difficult to fight because they are relatively easy to perform. The attacker just needs to get his hands on the potential victim’s phone number. Then these attackers proceed in two different forms: the first involves identity theft, where the attackers deceive the technical representatives into believing that the affected person has lost or damaged the SIM card. This prompts them to issue a new SIM card to the attacker.

The other vector concerns the contacts of insiders in a telephone operator. The attacker exploits this contact to obtain a new SIM card with the number of the potential victim. This allows them to access exchanges even though there is some sort of multi-factor authentication defense in place. The FBI has already warned of these dangers.

Some high-profile sim swap cases have been in the public eye: Michael Terpin, a blockchain investor, sued AT&T for $ 200 million in damages for negligence after suffering a sin swap attack in 2020. A judge ultimately dismissed the lawsuit, but it put the sim exchange and cryptocurrency in the public eye. Additionally, Europol foiled a sim swap transaction that stole more than $ 100 in cryptocurrency last February.

What do you think of the latest FBI warning on possible cryptocurrency attacks? Tell us in the comments section below.

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