Africa’s high crypto adoption rate attracts cybercriminals

Africa is facing a surge in cyberattacks in which hackers hijack social media accounts of prominent figures and institutions to promote fake cryptocurrencies. Some experts recommend educational campaigns to teach users how to validate token promotions.

Breached accounts used in crypto fraud promotion

Africa faces threats from hackers hijacking social media accounts of prominent figures and trustworthy institutions to promote fake cryptocurrencies. Over the past few months, a surge in cyberattacks have targeted well-known individuals and organizations, and breached verified accounts to spread fraudulent cryptocurrency promotions.

As reports from bitcoin.com and other media reports show, cybercriminals who used this trick are targeting Kenya law enforcement agencies, South Africa’s parliament and Ghana’s President John Mahama’s social media accounts. In many cases, cybercriminals controlled their social media accounts at least 24 hours before the owner regained control.

Otherwise, victims of these attacks could only warn users through non-social media channels. Although numbers regarding total losses incurred are not available, some observers estimate that the losses are millions of dollars.

Although this issue is not limited to the African continent, experts believe that the relatively high cryptocurrency adoption rate in the region is one of the main reasons hackers are African institutions or individuals with large followers. This perspective is shared by Anthony Anzalone, founder and CEO of Xion.

“This combination of high recruitment and economic leverage creates an attractive environment for scammers. What’s more, the true enthusiasm for cryptocurrencies as a solution to currency instability and limited bank access means a promotional message.

Experts recommend strong digital hygiene

The Xion founder dismisses claims that regulations could discourage cybercriminals from targeting social media users in Africa. Instead, Anzalone believes that social media platforms will help combat these criminals by implementing “more powerful account security measures and verification protocols.” Apart from social media platforms, players in the digital asset industry need to establish “clear criteria for identifying legitimate projects.”

According to Anzalone, they should also tackle an educational campaign that teaches both how to validate token promotions across multiple trusted sources and current cryptocurrency users. He added that future token or memo coin buyers must be taught not to make investment decisions on X’s single posts by their preferred celebrities. Anzalone believes instilling this validation mindset in users is much more effective than relying on technological solutions that are obsolete.

“Creating this validation mindset within the community is ultimately more resilient than ultimately relying solely on the technical solutions that the attacker has ultimately decided to avoid,” Anzalone told Bitcoin.com News.

Meanwhile, the Xion founder’s sentiment regarding prioritizing user education is shared by recent hacking victim Jason Brink.Network CEO. According to Brink, maintaining excellent digital hygiene — including avoiding password reuse, cleaning up old app connections, staying on permission — it’s difficult for Cyber ​​Criminal to take over social media accounts.

To protect leaders and influencers targeted by hackers, Brink emphasized the importance of better security habits.

“It’s enough to help without killing innovation, and require stronger security habits, better tools, and perhaps smart collaboration with local regulators. Cryptospace is responsible for helping emerging market users stay safe while exploring what is possible,” Brink said.

Anzalone said that robust knowing the customer (KYC) procedures specifically designed to identify suspicious promotional activities should be implemented. He also called for the creation of a rapid response network in the area that could quickly alert the community when fraud was identified. The work of such networks goes a long way in limiting damages when an incident occurs, he said.