key takeaways:
- San Diego State University researchers unveil 95,111 scam lists from 87,617 accounts on X, causing $870,000 in losses over a year.
- GiveawayScamHunter, the automated tool, identifies 95,111 scam lists by 87,617 accounts on the platform between June 2022 and June 2023.
In a recent study, it has been unveiled that fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes capitalized on Twitter’s list feature to orchestrate bogus cryptocurrency giveaways, resulting in a whopping sum of over $800,000 being swindled within a single year. This research delved into the concerning influence of crypto scams that have been spreading rapidly across the Twitter platform.Ā
Over the span of a year, these scams successfully extracted an astonishing $870,000 from individuals who were unsuspectingly targeted. The researchers embarked on an exhaustive examination of the strategies utilized by scammers to manipulate the platform, ultimately leading users into falling for their deceptive tactics and losing their hard-earned funds.
In an innovative effort, experts at San Diego State University have crafted an artificial intelligence (AI) solution, aptly named GiveawayScamHunter, aimed at identifying and exposing cryptocurrency giveaway scams rampant on Twitter.
This automated system has achieved remarkable results, pinpointing a staggering 95,111 scam lists generated by 87,617 accounts across the social media platform within the timeframe from June 2022 to June 2023.
Leveraging the power of GiveawayScamHunter, the research team managed to extract pertinent information, including website and wallet addresses linked to these scams.
Consequently, this endeavor unveiled a total of 327 scam-related internet domains and 121 previously undisclosed cryptocurrency wallet addresses associated with fraudulent activities. This groundbreaking AI-driven tool represents a significant step toward mitigating the pervasive threat of cryptocurrency giveaway scams.
A research paper released on August 10th highlighted that the “free cryptocurrency giveaway” scam has targeted more than 365 victims, leading to an approximate financial loss of $870,000.Ā
However, a complete resolution to this issue has yet to be achieved. The research team concluded that almost 44% of the spam accounts were still operational when the findings were compiled. Although it reported both its findings and the account details to X, the issue persisted.
The majority of the scams targeted big cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. To generate fraud lists and escape detection, numerous hijacked and bot accounts were employed.
The investigation also discovered 121 distinct cryptocurrency wallet addresses linked to the bogus giveaways. The researchers concluded that these crypto frauds caused approximately $872,000 in victim losses across various blockchains by tracing transactions.
