Inadvertent Rise Of Hacks
A rise in crypto-related hacks has accompanied the growing crypto hype. Cybercriminals strive to deceive potential victims to make money. This is due to the rising price of Bitcoin since September last year amid international investor interest. According to global cloud security solutions provider Barracuda, crypto-related email compromise attacks grew by 192% from October 2020 to May 2021. According to Barracuda experts, the rising price of bitcoin has resulted in a rise in cryptocurrency-related assaults.
Barracuda’s Analysis
Cryptocurrencies, notably Bitcoin, have gradually gained popularity in the mainstream financial sector to send and accept payments. Until last year, however, this was not the case. Businesses experimenting with Bitcoin, such as Tesla, MicroStrategy, Visa, PayPal, Square, JPMorgan, and others, have driven up the price and value of the digital currency.
“Fueled by the chaos around bitcoin, its price increased by almost 400% between October 2020 and April 2021. Cyberattacks quickly followed with impersonation attacks, which led to its growth by 192%,” the company said.
The Trap Setup by Hackers
According to Barracuda, hackers utilize Bitcoin to get paid in extortion operations. They claim to have a compromising video or evidence released to the public unless the victim pays to keep it quiet. Though this practice has been around for a while, when Bitcoin’s value climbed, hackers began to use it in their corporate email breach assaults impersonating workers within a firm. Hackers target and personalize such emails to induce recipients to buy Bitcoin. They also make them donate to bogus charities or pay a fake vendor invoice via cryptocurrency.
India in a Very Sensitive Zone
According to the revised India findings released by Microsoft in July 2020 of its Security Endpoint Threat Report 2019. India was among the nations with the most significant bitcoin mining encounters and drive-by download assaults during the year. Despite a 35% decrease from 2018, India’s crypto mining encounter rate was still 4.6 times higher than the international and regional average. After Sri Lanka, India has the second-highest encounter rate in the Asia Pacific.
