«Several developments in the cryptocurrency market are likely to have a major impact on the ways in which cybercrime will attack in the near future,» said the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol). Alert on ecosystem-related crimes of cryptocurrencies. The statement is part of the agency's annual report published on July 25, where they point out the trends and aspects that could contribute to the increase in online crime. They cite among them cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and non-fungible tokens (NFTs). And although criminals have not yet found viable means to carry out large-scale frauds with these products, Europol's analysis emphasizes how The growing adoption of Bitcoin ETFs makes users a target for criminals.
The first Bitcoin ETF was approved in January 2024, to allow investors to speculate on the price of bitcoin without owning bitcoins directly. This development may lead to greater adoption of the cryptocurrency by attracting the attention of criminals. Europol report.
This is a trend that, according to the European police agency, can play into the hands of scammers. All this, as they find ways to take advantage of the lack of experience of many people who are increasingly attracted to this sector«The more people are exposed to these new financial products, in the hope of profiting, the more likely they are to abuse them,» the report said. A situation that could climb more right now, following the recent approval of Ethereum ETFs. This suggests that people will become more interested in ETFs. “Companies issuing cryptocurrency ETFs will also have to hold large reserves of cryptocurrencies, which could make them valuable targets for scammers,” the publication notes. In this sense, attention is drawn to the technological advances that are available to everyone. with artificial intelligence (AI) and that make it easier for people, without much technical knowledge, may commit cybercrimes.
AI will contribute to the rise of cybercrime
The report points out how AI tools and deepfakes are expanding the opportunities for social engineering for criminalsin operations of deception and manipulation. It happens from the abuse of strategies that allow «usurping legitimate services with malicious versions created ad hoc by criminals,» according to Europol. In fact, AI is already used as part of criminal scripts to hack exchange houses and steal funds. As BitcoinDynamic reported, this practice was reported by the Binance exchangewhich last year warned about the use of AI to create deepfakes in an attempt to bypass KYC (know your customer) verification. “There is likely to be an increasing number of AI-generated ads that will attract victims online, even overcoming language barriers,” Europol notes. Hence, it recommends arming yourself with New methods to protect the financial system of the European Union. On this, Europol Executive Director Catherine De Bolle says the following: Law enforcement agencies are expected to build a strong capacity to counter the growing threats arising from cybercriminals taking advantage of AI, both in terms of human resources and technical skills. On this point, the Europol report concludes that one of the ways to address these threats is to: is prevention. He therefore recommends not only educating users, but also trying to raise awareness among criminals.