Bitcoin Fraud Cases Increase Around the World in 2017. As the bitcoin continues to grow in value and popularity, there have been concerns over how people are using the cryptocurrency. One vital concern to notice entails fraud cases relating to the bitcoin. More people around the world are engaging in fraudulent activities involving the bitcoin.
The UK-based Action Fraud reporting group has found that nearly a thousand crimes relating to the bitcoin took place in the past year. This is close to three times the total number of crimes that took place in 2016. A little more than 300 fraud crimes linked to the bitcoin took place that year.
The Action Fraud report specifically says that 167 fraud crimes took place this past December. This is compared to the 41 crimes that occurred the prior December. This is a sign that the bitcoin is becoming popular, but it also suggests that people are willing to take advantage of those who are interested in the prominent cryptocurrency.
The rise in bitcoin-related fraud crimes comes as the currency has experienced a dramatic increase in value. The currency had been at around $1,000 at the start of the year but it eventually went into the five-digit total, getting as high as $20,000 in December.
The types of fraudulent activities involving the bitcoin include extortion cases where people are forcing bitcoin transactions out of other people. Investment fraud activities involving false ICOs and other actions where other people’s money is being pocketed have also been taking place.
Social media site have been utilized to target many of these people, thus making it easier for fraudulent activities to be promoted.
The Action Fraud report does not include the WannaCry ransomware attack or other attacks that impacted the NHS and other organizations within the country. The report did not list information on how much money the bitcoin-related fraud cases were worth.
Struggling to Keep Up
There are concerns that the rise of the bitcoin is making it harder for some businesses to stay stable and to avoid problems relating to fraud. Kroll’s Global Fraud and Risk Report states in its findings for 2017 that around 86 percent of companies in most major countries have experienced some kind of fraud in the past year. Close to 90 percent of companies in China and Hong Kong have particularly experienced fraud. More than 90 percent of businesses in both the United Kingdom and Canada have experienced such problems as well.
Email-based phishing attacks have become more commonplace in the bitcoin era. About 33 percent of cyber incidents in the past year entailed such attacks. This is an increase over the 26 percent from the prior year. The finding suggests that more groups are sending messages to businesses relating to the bitcoin and trying to get them to take advantage of certain trades. Nearly a fifth of businesses are also experiencing wire transfer attacks where bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies being used by those groups are being stolen.
The report suggests that businesses are struggling to try and protect bitcoin-related activities. This may also suggest that some businesses are trying too hard to enter into the growing field to use the currency, thus making it easier for them to get into trouble.
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