If we take a look at our mobile phones, it’s certain that they are filled with all kinds of applications. It’s not difficult at all to access our favorite app store and search for apps, but this is something we always have to do very carefully. Internet criminals know well how to push us to download fake apps to steal data or even money. Therefore, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recommends being extremely cautious with these fake cryptocurrency apps. We’ll tell you more about them.
Fake apps are nothing new. For years, many important data thefts have been reported due to downloading apps that look real (in fact, they mimic perfectly valid apps) but end up being fraudulent. Preventing cryptocurrency theft is necessary if you’ve invested in it, as any misstep of this kind can cost you a lot of money.
As mentioned above, the FBI recommends cryptocurrency investors to be extremely cautious with these fake apps. According to estimates by this entity in North America, this type of fraudulent apps has managed to steal nearly $42.7 million from American investors, which is an extremely high amount to the point of being scary.
These apps are designed by internet criminals to impersonate legitimate apps, causing many cryptocurrency investors to unfortunately fall for this type of scam. The FBI estimates that 244 individuals have been victims of this type of fraudulent requests so far.
One of the worst scams involved an app pretending to be a legitimate American financial institution, using its own logo. This app encouraged its users to deposit their cryptocurrencies in wallets that were supposed to be linked to their accounts. Once done, the victim was left unable to withdraw the money upon request.
Although this is the main form of fraud, it’s not the only one. Another fake cryptocurrency app requested its users to deposit their cryptocurrencies in the app’s wallets, and once done, they asked for more money under the guise of freezing the existing coins in the app. This fraud operation was discovered in November 2021 and operated under the name Sunpay.
It’s clear that all these fraudulent apps target the cryptocurrency wallets of their victims. Most of these apps tend to work very quickly: they appear, steal cryptocurrency wallets from as many people as possible, and then disappear without a trace.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) recommends that all cryptocurrency investors beware of all requests that come to us to download investment apps that we did not request. Additionally, this entity also recommends verifying the legitimacy of the app and the company behind it before downloading, and dealing with apps with limited or disabled features with caution.
[Source](https://es.cointelegraph.com/news/fbi-issues-public-warning-over-fake-crypto-apps)
