More Than 10,000 People Have Fallen Victim To Fake Cryptocurrency Apps

The rise of cryptocurrency has opened up a lot of opportunities especially when it comes to investing and transactions. For example, cryptocurrency has the power to make e-commerce significantly easier due to the ease of payments since it can be instant. It basically makes the world a playing ground as far as global currency transfer is concerned. However, this has also opened up more doors for fraud and scammers.

There are numerous cryptocurrency wallets out there that allow people to hold their money in the form of digital currencies such as bitcoin and they also give users the option of converting the money back to regular currency. However, most people prefer the convenience offered by mobile platforms especially for the purposes of mobility. For this reason, most people prefer to use apps rather than visiting actual websites through browsers. The same case applies to people who want to use bitcoin to transact.

The fact that there are billions of smartphone users has led to the creation of cryptocurrency wallet apps but this has also opened doors for rogue developers to make a killing by stealing cryptocurrency through fake digital currency apps. More than 10,000 people have downloaded such apps and fallen victims to the scammers. Many people have reported losing their money through such apps.

Most of the victims have reported that they were locked out of their accounts and their details were stolen and they ended up losing their digital currencies. The fake cryptocurrency apps have also managed to infiltrate the two major mobile operating systems, Android and iOS. The most recent report was an app called MyEtherWallet, a fake spinoff app of the popular website under the same name. The app was available for download on the App Store for $4.99 and it even managed to secure a spot among the most popular apps. However, there have been numerous reports flagging the app as fake.

Most of the apps seem to be masquerading as apps the app versions of cryptocurrency websites. One good example is Poloniex which does not have an app version of its website but there are numerous apps on Google Play that bear the same identity. The failure of cryptocurrency wallets to come up with app versions of their websites is a major reason for the existence of these apps. If genuine app versions were generated, then there is a chance that the fake ones could easily be flagged and removed from Google Play and the App Store.

Some rogue developers are simply bent on making a quick buck from the cryptocurrency industry. However, the fact that it is still a young industry despite rapid growth means that there are loopholes that can be used to take advantage of the system.

The problem with such apps is that it is not easy to tell which one is legitimate and which one is the counterfeit one. Cryptocurrency holders are thus better off managing their balances through websites just to be on the safe side.

Disclaimer: This article should not be taken as, and is not intended to provide, investment advice. Please conduct your own thorough research before investing in any cryptocurrency.

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