Crypto Rom – an international digital currency scam ring – appears to have grown heavily over just the last year. The organization works by engaging in romance scams in which both iPhone and Android users are duped into thinking someone is interested in them after meeting on Tinder and other social media apps. From there, they are often tricked into giving the scammer cryptocurrency.
Crypto Rom Has Expanded Quite a Bit
Cybersecurity ring Sophos says that Crypto Rom is largely active in the United States, Europe, and Asia. One of the other major steps the organization will take is convincing users to download fake cryptocurrency apps that ultimately misdirect whatever digital assets the users own into wallets that are controlled by the scammers. This is done through manipulating the features that come with Apple’s Enterprise Signature platform.
Sophos has currently been in contact with many victims of Crypto Rom. Members of the team say that these victims have been talking with them for some time now, and that the number of people scammed has grown to unprecedented levels. Sophos is gathering all the information it can to assess the threats posed by Crypto Rom so those in charge can be brought down once and for all.
In a statement, the security firm explained:
Most also reported that they had lost thousands of dollars in personal savings to the crooks behind the scams, though some saw our previous reports and recognized the scam before being drawn into it too deeply. In some cases, victims have lost their entire savings and even taken out loans with the hope that they will get their money back.
According to new research, Crypto Rom is now garnering new victims through cold-calling methods on WhatsApp, the popular messaging tool introduced by Facebook (now Meta). The calls talk about alleged investing opportunities and offer crypto trading tips, and huge financial returns are being promised to the would-be victims.
Anyone who falls for the messages are then directed to fraudulent crypto trading websites where they are told to download alleged crypto trading applications. This is where things get quite ugly, as the victims are permitted to make withdrawals after receiving a boost in their overall crypto savings. They then ultimately become convinced that they should invest more.
Cutting Off All Future Funds
Researchers stated:
To sweeten the pot, they even offer to ‘lend’ the target a huge sum to increase the investment. Since they control the back end of the app, they can inject fake deposits on accounts and create imaginary profits at will.
After they pay more, the attackers swoop in and cut off all withdrawals to ensure that they can no longer have access to the crypto funds at hand. The only way for them to attain their money is by paying a tax of roughly 20 percent to the app’s fake customer service team.
Source: https://www.livebitcoinnews.com/romance-scam-group-crypto-rom-has-gotten-much-bigger/