Bad people who prey on people looking for love or to make a quick buck have been around since Biblical times. But in recent years, the rise of three new technologies – social media, online dating platforms, and cryptocurrencies – has given these predators powerful new tools to expand their reach. As a result, recent days have seen a flood of heartbreaking stories about online romance scams and “pig butchering” (a term used by Chinese scammers to describe how they slowly gain someone's trust before getting away with an investment scam). ing.
The good news is that some of the major companies whose platforms have been exploited by these scams are fighting back. On Tuesday, the usual coalition of technology and cryptocurrency companies teamed up with dating giant Match, which operates apps like Tinder, in an effort to share information and resources to combat romance scams and pig butchering. Announced Tech Against Scams. The coalition includes Meta, the parent company of Facebook and WhatsApp, as well as crypto companies Coinbase, Kraken, Ripple, and Gemini.
“This coalition will double the power of security teams at tech companies, share threat insights and trends, and better disrupt fraudulent networks around the world,” Guy Rosen, Meta's chief information security officer, said in a statement. We hope to make this possible.”
In an interview with luck, Yoel Roth, Vice President of Trust and Safety at Match, explained that the current wave of fraud is primarily being carried out by criminal organizations in Southeast Asia. These gangs often use human trafficking victims to contact potential targets in other countries and lure them into exchanging text messages. These conversations involve scammers posing as romantic partners or friendly sources of investment advice, with the goal of persuading recipients to transfer cryptocurrencies to criminal organizations. After withdrawing as much money as possible, the sender disappears.
Ross, who served in a similar trust and safety role at Twitter, said that if fraudsters are detected and kicked off the site, they move on to other online platforms, whether it's social media sites or dating apps. I am proficient in . He says by forming a coalition, companies will no longer operate in silos. In return, they will be able to exchange information that facilitates the detection of fraudsters and share the tools they have each built to combat fraudsters. Ross' hope is that by combining resources, the group will be able to quickly apprehend criminals, no matter where they are found in the kill chain.
Philip Martin, chief security officer at Coinbase, said Tech Against Scams was partially inspired by similar efforts launched in the early days when Facebook and Google collaborated to detect fraudsters on their sites. He states that he obtained a ration. He added that while the new coalition includes Coinbase's rivals in the crypto industry, there are “no competitive concerns” regarding sharing information that could identify and thwart fraudsters. Ta.
Tech Against Scams is the first coalition of its kind to span a diverse group of technology and cryptocurrency companies, and we intend to expand further. Martin and Ross said the group is already in talks with several other companies used by scammers in romance scams and pig-butchering scams, including some well-known to consumers.
Currently, the coalition is missing a notable name. They are the giant cryptocurrency exchange Binance and the stablecoin issuer Tether. Tether tokens are a large part of the illegal pig slaughter economy. Martin declined to say whether he or other members of Tech Against Scams are in talks with the companies, but said the coalition is open to companies that share its goals.
Martin and Ross tried to present a realistic view of efforts to combat romance scams and pig slaughter, but each said the improvements they make are incremental and do not completely solve the problem. He said no. “The reality is these scams have been around since time immemorial,” Martin said.
