Cryptocurrency owners might want to look into investing into a cryptocurrency wallet, as the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has warned, hackers are actively pursuing cryptocurrency exchanges, third-party payment systems, and individual owners of digital assets in their efforts to steal money.

After being alerted by Bleeping Computer, the FBI said that hackers use different methods like identity theft to get access to their victim’s cryptography and other sensitive information.

According to the FBI, several methods are being used to steal and launder bitcoin, including technical support fraud, SIM switching (also known as SIM hijacking), and gaining control of their targets’ cryptocurrency exchange accounts via identity theft or account takeover.

According to the publication, several instances of crypto theft were reported to the FBI in the course of a year, with varying degrees of identity theft and impersonation involved.

In the period between May 2020 and May 2021, the US security agency [FBI] saw and received complaints from victims of hackers taking bitcoin after doing the following actions:

• getting access to victims’ cryptocurrency exchange accounts after circumventing two-factor authentication measures. 

When victims of online tech support scams call in, impersonating payment platforms or bitcoin exchange support personnel will answer the phone.

• SIM switch assaults that are directed at consumers of various phone service providers.”

According to the study, following SIM swapping, “criminals may log into their victims’ bank or cryptocurrency exchange accounts to steal money and virtual assets, and then lock the victims out of their accounts after resetting the passwords.”

When dealing with susceptible organizations, the FBI recommends a variety of precautionary steps, including activating multi-factor authentication (MFA).

Financial institutions that may be targeted in similar assaults are advised to check for emails originating from faked email addresses and to maintain track of and monitor newly established accounts, according to the FBI.

It is also recommended that cryptocurrency owners enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) on all of their cryptocurrency accounts, deny requests to download and use remote access applications, and always contact cryptocurrency exchanges and payment companies through official phone numbers and email addresses.”

Disclaimer: Information Warfare News does not provide financial advice. The opinions stated on this site do not constitute investment advice. Before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, or other digital assets, investors should do thorough due diligence on the investments. Please be warned that any transfers or transactions you make are done at your own risk and that any losses you may suffer are entirely your responsibility.