The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has opened investigations into approval phishing scams that have stolen funds from about 2,000 wallets linked to Australian users. The information was revealed by a Chainalysis probe called ‘Operation Spincaster’ that studied scams of this nature across six countries spanning from May 2021. Scammers have stolen over $4 billion from users globally over the period the blockchain analysis firm investigated.

In a blog published by Chainalysis last month, the Detective Superintendent of the AFP, Tim Stainton, stated, “The intelligence we have gathered collaboratively throughout Operation Spincaster has shed a clear light on new tactics used by cybercriminals in their continued efforts to defraud Australians, and it will form a key part of our ongoing investigations to identify cybercrime victims and disrupt offenders in Australia.”

Regarding the investigations launched as a result of Chainalysis’ operation, a statement from the AFP read, “The AFP has ongoing investigations into the Australian losses identified in Operation Spincaster and has developed further intelligence about cryptocurrency scam tactics to help prevent more Australians being scammed.”

Approval phishing scams involve cybercriminals luring victims to sign malicious transactions that give them access to the victims’ funds. Most often, victims fall for schemes promising high returns—these schemes are used to manipulate unsuspecting crypto users to approve fraudulent transactions. With that, the bad actors get to drain their targets’ wallets. Another popular way of conducting phishing scams is by introducing the romance element to trick victims. In other words, romance scams.

The AFP is collaborating with Chainlaysis and multiple other stakeholders to ensure they can end approval phishing scams that affect users in the country. One group participating in making the investigation successful is the crypto exchanges operating in Australia.

Tim Stainton appreciated their participation, mentioning, “We thank the digital currency exchanges, BTC Markets, Binance, Crypto.com, Ebonex, Independent Reserve, OKX, SwyftX, and Wayex, for their commitment to identifying Australian victims, to provide support and prevent ongoing victimisation and monetary loss in Australia.”

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