‘Stablecoins’ Enabled $40 Billion in Crypto Crime Since 2022

A new report from Chainalysis finds that stablecoins like Tether, tied to the value of the US dollar, were used in the vast majority of crypto-based scam transactions and sanctions evasion in 2023...

AI used to fake voices of loved ones in “I’ve been in an accident” scam

The San Francisco Chronicle tells a story about a family that almost got scammed when they heard their sons voice telling them hed been in a car accident and hurt a pregnant woman. Sadly, this is becoming more common. Scammers want to spread panic among their victims, and to do this, they feign a...

A true tale of virtual kidnapping: Lock and Code S05E02

This week on the Lock and Code podcast… On Thursday, December 28, at 8:30 pm in the Utah town of Riverdale, the city police began investigating what they believed was a kidnapping. 17-year-old foreign exchange student Kai Zhuang was missing, and according to Riverdale Police Chief Casey Warren,...

A true tale of virtual kidnapping: Lock and Code S05E02

This week on the Lock and Code podcast… On Thursday, December 28, at 8:30 pm in the Utah town of Riverdale, the city police began investigating what they believed was a kidnapping. 17-year-old foreign exchange student Kai Zhuang was missing, and according to Riverdale Police Chief Casey Warren,...

“I’ll miss him so much” Facebook scam uses BBC branding to lure victims

Facebook scams are a constant nuisance and vary from like-farming to scams that can cost you some serious money. The latest one we found is a bit morbid. Recently, I’ve seen quite a few posts on my timeline that looked like this: Without going into details the post says: “I can’t believe he’s gon...

Inferno Malware Masqueraded as Coinbase, Drained $87 Million from 137,000 Victims

The operators behind the now-defunct Inferno Drainer created more than 16,000 unique malicious domains over a span of one year between 2022 and 2023. The scheme "leveraged high-quality phishing pages to lure unsuspecting users into connecting their cryptocurrency wallets with the attackers'...

Facebook Job Scam

Qualys has confirmed ongoing attacks against multiple brands offering work-from-home remote job offers, advertised through Facebook. Unfortunately, these scams typically see a rise in prevalence following the holidays. Qualys has confirmed cyber criminals are advertising jobs within Facebook to...

X Account of Google Cybersecurity Firm Mandiant Hacked in Crypto Scam

By Waqas The hackers changed Mandiant's Twitter handle from "@Mandiant" to "@phantomsolw." This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: X Account of Google Cybersecurity Firm Mandiant Hacked in Crypto Scam...

Mandiant's Twitter Account Restored After Six-Hour Crypto Scam Hack

American cybersecurity firm and Google Cloud subsidiary Mandiant had its X formerly Twitter account compromised for more than six hours by an unknown attacker to propagate a cryptocurrency scam. As of writing, the account has been restored on the social media platform. It's currently not clear ho...

DOJ Slams XCast with $10 Million Fine Over Massive Illegal Robocall Operation

The U.S. Department of Justice DoJ on Tuesday said it reached a settlement with VoIP service provider XCast over allegations that it facilitated illegal telemarketing campaigns since at least January 2018, in contravention of the Telemarketing Sales Rule TSR. In addition to prohibiting the compan...

Helping a banking fraud victim

A few months ago an elderly friend of a friend asked for some help. They had been scammed and had £10K stolen. Was there anything I could do to help? This wasn’t going to be a pleasant task: recovering monies stolen as a result of banking fraud is all but impossible. I was going to have to explai...

Beware: Scam-as-a-Service Aiding Cybercriminals in Crypto Wallet-Draining Attacks

Cybersecurity researchers are warning about an increase in phishing attacks that are capable of draining cryptocurrency wallets. "These threats are unique in their approach, targeting a wide range of blockchain networks, from Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain to Polygon, Avalanche, and almost 20...

Hackers Stole $59 Million of Crypto Via Malicious Google and X Ads

By Deeba Ahmed Corrected sentence: "Anti-scam solutions provider Scam Sniffer and cybersecurity firm Check Point Research CPR have warned of increasing attacks aimed at your crypto funds through malicious ads." This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Hackers Stole $59 Million of...

“Get Paid to Like Videos”? This YouTube Scam Leads to Empty Wallets

By Deeba Ahmed From WhatsApp to Telegram: New Twist on Old Scam Exploits Users for Money via YouTube Video Engagement. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: "Get Paid to Like Videos"? This YouTube Scam Leads to Empty Wallets...

Four U.S. Nationals Charged in $80 Million Pig Butchering Crypto Scam

Four U.S. nationals have been charged for participating in an illicit scheme that earned them more than $80 million via cryptocurrency investment scams. The defendants – Lu Zhang, 36, of Alhambra, California; Justin Walker, 31, of Cypress, California; Joseph Wong, 32, Rosemead, California; and...

SpyLoan Scandal: 18 Malicious Loan Apps Defraud Millions of Android Users

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered 18 malicious loan apps for Android on the Google Play Store that have been collectively downloaded over 12 million times. "Despite their attractive appearance, these services are in fact designed to defraud users by offering them high-interest-rate loans...

Fake hotel reservation phishing scam uses PDF links to spread MrAnon Stealer

By Waqas Received an email about a hotel reservation you didn't book? It's likely a phishing attempt delivering the MrAnon Stealer malware. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Fake hotel reservation phishing scam uses PDF links to spread MrAnon Stealer...

USPS Delivery Phishing Scam Exploits SaaS Providers to Steal Data

By Deeba Ahmed Walmart customers have become the prime target of this phishing scam. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: USPS Delivery Phishing Scam Exploits SaaS Providers to Steal Data...

Sophisticated Booking.com Scam Targeting Guests with Vidar Infostealer

By Deeba Ahmed Vidar infostealer is capable of stealing browsing data, including passwords, cryptocurrency wallet credentials, and other personal information. This is a post from HackRead.com Read the original post: Sophisticated Booking.com Scam Targeting Guests with Vidar Infostealer...

$19 Stanely cups, fake Amazon Prime memberships all part of holiday shopping scams circulating

I know Im a little late to the party to hit the prime SEO for Black Friday, Cyber Monday and holiday shopping. But if I know the readers of this newsletter, everyone is far from done with their holiday shopping already after a few days. I also know Im far from the only person to warn consumers...