Scammers have begun to exploit the desire of many within the crypto community for Ukraine to resist Russia’s military attack and support its citizens through the conflict. A report shows that fraudsters are increasing their efforts to lure donors to “help Ukraine” via cryptocurrency, as the country continues to raise millions of bitcoin.

Crypto Scams Induce Prospective Donors To Support Invaded Nation

People wishing to send cryptocurrency to Ukraine to defend their country from a Russian military operation may fall for phishing websites and forum posts. Bleeping Computer warns that this trap could be set by emails, phishing websites and forums.

The tech news outlet has discovered a series of new scams that encourage crypto users to “help Ukraine”, by donating bitcoins and other digital currencies at addresses other than those provided by the government in Kyiv or Ukrainian NGOs.

The scammers behind these scams use a variety of methods. These include phishing emails that appear to be from the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (NPR domains), and forum posts seemingly linked to the “Help Ukraine” movement.

The report reveals that other cybersecurity and ransomware researchers such as Malware Hunter Team and Jake Jcybersec_ have found more .org and .com domains established by scammers such as “Ukraine-donate,” “Ukraineglobalaid” and “Ukrainewar.support.”

These scams could be more effective because they use emotional appeals that target audiences may find difficult to resist. Add to that the fact that the Ukrainian government itself and local volunteer groups have been actively seeking donations in various coins to fund their defense effort:

Stand with the people of Ukraine. Accepting cryptocurrency donations Bitcoin, Ethereum and USDT.

BTC – 357a3So9CbsNfBBgFYACGvxxS6tMaDoa1P

ETH and USDT (ERC-20) – 0x165CD37b4C644C2921454429E7F9358d18A45e14

— Ukraine / Ukrayina (@Ukraine) February 26, 2022

The crypto community also supported humanitarian efforts in the wake of the conflict. The world’s leading digital asset exchange, Binance, announced this week it’s donating $10 million to help the Ukrainian people. The recently launched crowdfunding initiative “Humanity First- Ukraine Emergency Relief Fund ” coordinates third party assistance.

You can support Ukrainian families, children, refugees, and displaced people by donating BTC, ETH, and BNB to Binance Charity’s Ukraine Emergency Relief Fund.

What do you think the crypto community can do to avoid scams and support genuine humanitarian efforts in Ukraine? Please comment below with your views.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

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