Cybercriminals use Apple event for cryptocurrency scam

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Users can recognize cryptocurrency scams by taking the time to review some of their features, such as possible promises of guaranteed earnings, free money, anonymous users, and more. (REUTERS/Given Ruvic)

The presentation of the new iPhone 14 (in its Plus, Pro and Pro Max versions), Apple Watch Series 8, SE and Ultra, and the new generation of Airpods Pro could be seen from the application of AppleTV and the website of Manzana. In the case of its official YouTube channel, the company achieved a total of 25 million views on the broadcast of the launch event in two days and the number continues to grow.

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However, the commotion caused by these new products among users was taken advantage of by cyber criminalswhich used the name of the technology company and used an old interview of its CEO, Tim Cookto add users to a cryptocurrency scam through Google’s video platform.

a channel of Youtube used Apple watermarks and posed as an official company event to make users believe that Tim Cook was giving a talk about the crypto world. In addition, in the description of the video you could see the link of a page of dodgy cryptocurrencies.

As reported by the digital media The Verge, this retransmission titled “Apple Event Live. CEO of Apple Tim Cook: Apple & Metaverse in 2022″, used company-related keywords and peaked over 70,000 viewerswho wanted to see what was new Manzana I had prepared for this year.

Cryptocurrency scam uses the image of Apple CEO Tim Cook to trick users on YouTube. (TheVerge)

The Cook interview that was used was actually one that was conducted by CNN in 2018, and to lend greater credibility to the content, it also had cryptocurrency watermarks such as Bitcoin Y ethereum. Yes ok Youtube came to remove this broadcast for violating the terms of the platform, it was not before users interested in the products of Manzana will be misled by this website.

In addition, this case was not isolated since, as reported by the same outlet, another channel used the same tactic to redirect users to a cryptocurrency page of dubious credibility. To do this, they used an interview Elon Musk (Tesla CEO) and jack dorsey (co-founder of Twitter) in which they talked about Bitcoin.

Although these cases were the most relevant due to the modality used to gain some credibility, the truth is that despite the fact that they led to dodgy cryptocurrency sitesthese videos were recommended by YouTube as if it were the real Apple event if users searched for a series of keywords.

According to the cybersecurity company, Kaspersky, users can identify some characteristics of scams in which cryptocurrencies are promoted or their use is promoted for profit with little effort.

One of the warning signs is that of a assured return “promise”. The reality is that no financial investment can guarantee future returns because they can fluctuate over time. A cryptocurrency making a statement like that is probably a scam.

Additionally, these scams often submit a “mediocre technical document” or even not having it. This is an important aspect because it explains how cryptocurrency was designed and how it works. Without this document, users should be careful before investing.

Cases of excessive marketing they are also important signs that it is a scam. If the advertising campaign for a cryptocurrency offering is excessive or includes outlandish promises without solid backing, further investigation is needed before making any transactions.

Yes no recognizable people or anonymous members within the team of people running the cryptocurrency operation, then you have to be careful. Profiles on social networks and an active presence on the internet are aspects to take into account.

Finally, if the cryptocurrency offers the opportunity to earn “free” moneythen the probability that it is a scam is very high.