Cyber Criminals are Taking Crypto Attacks to the Next Level

Cyber Criminals are Taking Crypto Attacks to the Next Level

Coinbase recently thwarted a very clever hacking attempt by cyber criminals. 

The planning and sophistication of the attack against this major cryptocurrency exchange was impressive. 

The attackers were careful, well-funded, technically savvy, and unexpectedly patient. 

They laid a foundation of trust by socially engineering people over an extended period of time before attempting to exploit two 0-Day vulnerabilities. 

Those don’t come cheap. They used compromised academic email accounts to bypass detection and built credibility with their targets over the course of many messages before sending a malicious link that directed victims to a custom browser exploit. 

This took planning and preparation. They obviously did research to identify proper candidates, connected with them on a platform and subject that held a high potential of engagement. Attackers even knew the type of web browser the intended victims were using on their systems. 

Gaining such insights takes dedication and organization. 

These are very smart tactics and not indicative behavior of typical cyber criminals who are impatient. This has the hallmarks of a professional team. 

Glad to hear that the compromise was detected and isolated before the next phase of the attack could take place. 

This attack is another example of how the crypto community is currently in the sights of organized and top-tier cyber criminals. 

Recently there was the $40 million hack of Binance and I predict we will see more of these attacks by the end of the year. I would not be surprised if several are successful to the tune of tens-of-millions of dollars each. 

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Matthew Rosenquist 

Cybersecurity Expert

Matthew Rosenquist is an industry-recognized pragmatic, passionate, and innovative strategic security expert with 28 years of experience. He thrives in challenging cybersecurity environments and in the face of ever shifting threats. A leader in identifying opportunities, driving industry change, and building mature security organizations, Matthew delivers capabilities for sustainable security postures. He has experience in protecting billions of dollars of corporate assets, consulting across industry verticals, understanding current and emerging risks, communicating opportunities, forging internal cooperation and executive buy-in, and developing practical strategies. Matthew is a trusted advisor, security expert, and evangelist for academia, businesses, and governments around the world. A public advocate for best-practices, and communicating the risks and opportunities emerging in cybersecurity. He delivers engaging keynotes, speeches, interviews, and consulting sessions at conferences and to audiences around the globe. He has attracted a large social following of security peers, is an active member on advisory boards, and quoted in news, magazines, and books. Matthew is a recognized industry expert, speaker, and leader who enjoys the pursuit of achieving optimal cybersecurity. Matthew Rosenquist is experienced in building world class teams and capabilities, managing security operations, evangelizing best-practices to the market, developing security products, and improving corporate security services. 

   
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