This is not the first time scammers have cloned crypto apps and listed them on popular online marketplaces where users frequently download apps for trading cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency scams have been on the rise since the recent market resurgence after two years of a massive downturn. As a result, cybercriminals are on the lookout for potential loopholes to gain access to users wallets and siphon funds from the emerging economy. On June 7, Trust Wallet, a popular decentralized wallet service provider, warned that bad actors have developed fake versions of its app to lure unsuspecting investors into downloading cloned apps for their crypto purchases and storage.
The Binance-owned company, which operates independently from the world’s largest exchange, said the cloned apps are available on both Xiaomi and Amazon stores.
Trust Wallet Issues Warning to Users
In a lengthy post on X, Trust Wallet cautioned users to be vigilant when downloading the app for the first time or updating an existing one on the two platforms.
The company emphasized the importance of ensuring the apps being downloaded from Xiaomi and Amazon stores are the official ones listed by the firm to avoid being scammed.
As part of its efforts to prevent users from falling prey to scammers, Trust Wallet has provided official sources where Android, iPhone, and desktop users can download the apps.
“You can be sure that the app you are downloading is our official app by heading to our website trustwallet.com and following the direct links to iOS (App Store), Android (Google Play Store), Trust Wallet Extension (Google Chrome Store),” the company wrote on X.
Trust Wallet said it has already filed an appeal for the fake apps to be delisted from both Xiaomi and Amazon stores.
Good Sues Fake App Developers
This is not the first time scammers have cloned crypto apps and listed them on popular online marketplaces where users frequently download apps for trading cryptocurrencies.
In April, Google filed a lawsuit against a group of developers who uploaded fake crypto apps on its app store, defrauding more than 100,000 individuals.
The US-based technology powerhouse sued the scammers, known by aliases such as Alphonse Sun and Hongnam Cheung (also identified as Zhang Hongnim or Stanford Fischer), hoping to set a precedent for other companies in protecting consumer interests.
The case is currently being held at the United States Southern District Court in New York. Google stated that the defendants listed about 87 fraudulent apps on its Play Store from 2019 to date.
A Common Scam in the Crypto Industry
Cloning crypto apps is a common scheme used by scammers to defraud investors in the industry. These bad actors develop fake versions of popular crypto trading platforms and wallet providers like Trust Wallet and MetaMask to obtain people’s login details, which they use to siphon funds from their accounts.
In January, a group of investors filed a complaint against CoinDCX, an Indian crypto exchange that offers different digital assets related products and services to users in the region.
These traders claimed they were asked to pay additional funds outside the regular transaction fees to withdraw their money from the platform. The company later clarified that the transactions never happened on their platform, explaining that the users may have been victims of a fake app masquerading as CoinDCX.