Cybercrime Mounts Amidst Russia’s Effort to Evade Strict Sanctions Imposed by the U.S, and Others — DailyCoin

The shelling of Ukraine continues as Russia’s invasion intensifies with each passing day. The conflict has been raging non stop since the initial incursion approximately a month ago, and, tragically, there are no signs of it coming to an end anytime soon.

As dire as the situation already is, it is quite disheartening to learn that cybercriminals have been taking unlawful advantage of the war to instigate numerous crimes, including defrauding individuals via crypto schemes.

In a series of reports from ongoing research being carried out by reputable sources, including Chainalysis, Cisco & Talos, and BankInfoSecurity, a heightened number of cryptocurrency-related scams have already been detected since the dawn of the Russia-Ukraine war.

If you understand how cybercrime works, then this likely comes as no surprise, considering that the perpetrators of such illicit acts often take advantage of people’s vulnerability. 

Sadly, “vulnerability” is an understatement in the context of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, from which over 3 million Ukrainians have fled to neighbouring countries in the hopes of finding sanctuary. That said, it is obvious that whoever is left in the country, especially in vulnerable cities such as Kyiv, Sumy, and Mariupol, among others, are in dire need of help.

Considering this, it is to be expected that good samaritans from all over the world would be willing to assist any Ukrainians who may still be stranded in war-torn cities. Regrettably, most of this communication takes place online, making it difficult to ascertain whether the person on the other end of the phone is genuine, or imitating sincerity.

According to a reputable source, cybercriminals have been detected sending out a variety of decoy emails in an attempt to exploit the situation. The emails are crafted to persuade the recipients to take actions that will ultimately benefit the attacker in the long run.

Since the war broke out in February, there has been a gradual increase in this type of activity; however, our source claims that what we have seen so far represents only a fraction of the overall fraudulent programs to come. 

Cisco Talos, dubbed the world’s largest commercial intelligence group, specifically warned that, as the war intensifies, the prevalence of cybercrime activities such as spam messages will continue to rise.

In a Twitter post, CT revealed: “Scammers and spammers are trying to take advantage of evolving news around Ukraine to spread malware and try and trick their way into some cryptocurrency, posing as fake nonprofits.”

In a blog post, CT further underlined that global interest in the ongoing war in Ukraine has made it a convenient and effective event for cybercriminals to exploit. It went on to compare the current scenario to a string of cybercrime operations that followed the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic more than two years ago.

Although some of these cybercrimes can be prevented, considering that there may be protections in place to prevent malware, there is absolutely no guarantee that one can avoid them completely. 

According to CT, “the risk of scams is significant and can be difficult to block, especially in the case of BEC, where trusted accounts are sending malicious emails.” 

That said, it is in the best interests of everyone, especially those who intend to help individuals and organizations in Ukraine, to make a habit of investigating the destination to which they are sending help.