TL;DR Breakdown
- South Korean authorities begin clampdown on crypto scams
- Authorities monitoring phishing attempts 24/7
Authorities in South Korea are beginning to strengthen structures in place to curb rising phishing crypto scam attempts in the country.
Local reports in Korea reveal that rise in prices for most cryptocurrencies, phishing activities have tripled in the country. The ICT ministry in South Korea is championing the initiative by collaborating with the National Police Agency.
The ministry, in its report, also notes that these phishing crypto scam attempts are made majorly through text messages. The ministry says it has blocked 32 phishing websites in 3 months.
The ministry expresses concern as the numbers are a sharp rise compared to the 41 such websites the ministry detected the whole of 2020. The scammers deceive their victims to input their details on a phony website. Once the victims fall prey, the scammers take over and wipe out the digital currency accounts.
The ministry also notes that many of these phishing crypto scam websites are not very complicated or advanced but simply take advantage of victim’s lack of attention to detail.
How ICM ministry is blockading crypto scams in Korea
The ICT ministry said with the rise in phishing websites. The ICT Ministry is strengthening its 24-hour monitoring system. They would immediately block these websites as soon as they are discovered.
The Police agency also has not stopped cracking down on these scammers since 2020. Weeks back, the police revealed they were investigating 21 cases in which scammers accessed their victims’ crypto wallets and stole their funds.
They also have been investigating many other crimes connected to crypto fraud and money laundering. Crypto has been a cherry to pluck for everyone in the past months as prices have boomed; hence, interest in crypto scams also rising alongside.
In a recent report, the Financial Supervisory Service revealed that crypto scams have gone up 42 percent, unlike last year.
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