Some cryptocurrency scams still appear on Facebook as advertisements, despite the efforts of the social media platform against crypto-related fraud.
Fake cryptocurrency exchanges with malicious intent have proliferated on the internet, including Facebook. This continues to happen even though the social media giant enforced mechanisms made to prevent fraudulent schemes.
A report from blockchain news outlet Hard Fork found crypto-related advertisements that were used for phishing attacks. One example was a sponsored post from an impostor Facebook account linking to a fraudulent news website.
The fake site—made to look similar with the genuine one—would then redirect readers to another fake site, this time for a nonexistent cryptocurrency project. This page would ask for the visitors’ personal details, which include their email address, password, and contact numbers.
The sham project would then send users to an imitation of a crypto exchange platform where, this time, the unknowing victims would be required to submit their credit card numbers. The fraudsters would use these details to steal money from the bank accounts of prospective crypto investors.
Many keen observers noticed that the sponsored ad, even the preview of the fake link, did not mention anything about crypto or blockchain. This looked like a deliberate attempt to bypass Facebook’s efforts against crypto scams on the website.
In late July, Facebook has reversed its earlier ban on all crypto-related ads. However, only those from screened advertisers would see runtime on the social media platform.
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