Last month, cybercriminals pilfered 47 million Dollars in cryptocurrency through phishing schemes

Crypto News– Last month, the crypto community fell victim to a wave of phishing attacks, leaving over 57,000 individuals grappling with the aftermath of fraudulent schemes propagated through fake accounts on social media giant, Platform X.

Last month, cybercriminals pilfered 47 million Dollars in cryptocurrency through phishing schemes

According to the latest findings by Scam Sniffer, a staggering $46.8 million vanished into the ether due to crypto phishing scams in February alone. The report highlights a troubling trend: unsuspecting victims were drawn into phishing websites by deceptive comments originating from spoofed Twitter handles. Ethereum’s mainnet bore the brunt of these attacks, with ERC-20 tokens emerging as the primary targets, constituting a whopping 86% of the loot.

Analysis conducted by Scam Sniffer unearthed the mechanics behind these thefts. Many fell prey to the ruse of malicious actors leveraging phishing signatures and transaction approvals, including Permit, IncreaseAllowance, and Uniswap Permit2. Compounding the issue, perpetrators increasingly utilized account abstraction wallets for token approval expenditures, exploiting the added functionalities and smart contract compatibility offered by these Ethereum wallets.

Despite a rise in the number of victims compared to January, February marked a decline in the overall sum stolen from the community. Notably, the number of victims losing over $1 million decreased significantly. Cybercriminals, often targeting high-profile figures, resorted to various tactics such as hijacking accounts or impersonating legitimate profiles to disseminate phishing links.

One notable breach occurred when MicroStrategy’s Platform X account was compromised, resulting in the loss of approximately $440,000 worth of cryptocurrencies. Compound Finance, Rocket Pool, Blockchain Capital, and even Vitalik Buterin, among others, found themselves in the crosshairs of these malevolent actors. Reports from December indicated a surge in “approval phishing” techniques, a method enticing victims to sign transactions that ultimately grant scammers unfettered access to their wallets, facilitating the siphoning of funds.

As the crypto landscape grapples with evolving threats, safeguarding against phishing attacks demands heightened vigilance and proactive measures from both platform operators and users alike.