A recent Kaspersky survey showed that instability is one of the main barriers to cryptocurrency adoption in Brazil among those who do not invest in this modality. Among investors, however, security is a concern for most respondents.
Of the Brazilians who invest in cryptocurrencies, 63% classify themselves as newcomers, that is, newcomers who started in the area less than a year ago.
Another 37% see themselves as professionals. When asked if they have any online security issues, 55% pointed to online email or phone scams.
Fear of using a fake cryptocurrency exchange
Interestingly, the same number of respondents also identified cryptocurrency-themed scams, e.g. fake exchanges or fraudulent schemes using crypto-assets, as a major problem.
Other issues of concern in Brazil include leaks of personal data (53%), malware for mobile phones and tablets (51%), data interception while using public Wi-Fi (50%), and password theft via websites and emails. (49%).
For Fabio Assolini, director of the Global Research and Analysis Team for Latin America at Kaspersky, Brazilians’ concerns reflect the growing trend of cryptocurrency-themed online scams. The main highlight is fake messages, which have grown by 40% in 2022 compared to the previous year.
“Phishing is the main tactic of Brazilian cybercrime because it is cheap and Brazilians are very creative – allowing them to create a convincing lure. Another strong method around here is banking Trojans. Ghimob was the first mobile RAT Trojan in 2020 to was willing to steal digital wallets. Today, virtually all financial malware created in Brazil also targets the victims’ crypto assets.”
Investors should beware
To protect yourself from these kinds of threats, the director of Kaspersky recommends a lot of caution and information.
“Cryptocurrencies are a new investment and unfortunately not yet regulated in Brazil. It is necessary to be knowledgeable about the types of investments and the companies behind the operations. This is the hardest part. To avoid online scams, just follow the same basic rules: check addresses before clicking, don’t enter personal information on unknown sites, and be careful when opening attachments or downloading programs on your mobile phone.
Kaspersky commissioned Arlington Research to conduct a global quantitative online survey of 12,000 people in 16 countries, including Austria, Brazil, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Malaysia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain , Switzerland, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, UK and USA.
For those who prefer convenience, it is worth remembering that Kaspersky recently launched additional features for the protection of cryptocurrencies and digital wallets, which are present in all end-consumer products such as Kaspersky Premium.
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
