Cybersecurity platform Avast reports that a large set of cybercriminal scams are posing as Ukrainians in need and asking for donations through various e-wallets.
The war between Russia and Ukraine is causing millions of innocent people to lose not only their lives, but also their friends, family and their own homes, and many are taking to social media not only to talk about their experience, but also to ask for help in the form of donations.
And this conflict that is currently happening in Ukraine has caused a great humanitarian mobilization around the world, causing people from anywhere, regardless of their economic status, to make a series of donations in the form of cryptocurrencies to certain needy people who they are asking on social networks like Twitter.
However, the Ukrainian government itself currently has assets several electronic wallets to receive donations of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum from anywhere in the world, but also certain Ukrainian citizens are asking for help in this way, and cybercriminals are taking advantage of the situation.
Stand with the people of Ukraine. Now accepting cryptocurrency donations. Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT.BTC – 357a3So9CbsNfBBgFYACGvxxS6tMaDoa1PETH and USDT (ERC-20) – 0x165CD37b4C644C2921454429E7F9358d18A45e14
— Ukraine / Україна (@Ukraine) February 26, 2022
And as reported by Avast, the specialized cybersecurity platform, cybercriminals are taking advantage of this conflict to pose as Ukrainians in need, putting their various Bitcoin wallets to attract donations from foreigners.
Considering that cryptocurrency transactions are completely anonymous and cannot be appealed, many are posing as affected Ukrainians, when in fact they are not, to get a good slice of donations of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin.
“We strongly recommend against sending money, especially in any form of crypto currencies. If you want to help people in Ukraine, do it through a reliable organization that operates in this region”, declares Michael SalatDirector of Threat Intelligence at Avast.
In this case, anyone who wants to make some type of donation must make absolutely sure that they really are an affected person, or use those official organizations that accept this type of donation, such as the Ukrainian government itself.
If you want to help a specific person who is going through difficulties, there are other ways to send this type of donation.