Crypto Robberies Surge Across Europe: $32.4M spWETH Stolen in Latest Attack

Crypto sleuth ZachXBT has noted an uptick in crypto robberies, precisely, physical robberies where people in the digital currency space are being held and threatened at gunpoint.

Armed robbers have started targeting cryptocurrency traders in Western Europe, including some of the top names in the industry.

ZachXBT: Crypto Meetups Become Deadly, Violence Surges

According to ZachXBT, in the past couple of months, violent assaults against popular crypto traders have visibly risen, shootings included in some incidents. He called for more care and caution in the crypto community, especially when organizing face-to-face meetings, as this rise in targeted crimes has raised the bar on risks for many individuals. Only in the last 24 hours, according to him, a victim was drained for 12K spWETH ($32.4M). However, big crypto players are teaming up to fight such criminal activities. Recently, Tether has teamed up with TRON blockchain and TRM Labs to curb crypto scams.

ZachXBT also added that a lot of the victims are influential in the cryptocurrency space, which is what makes them an attractive target for criminals looking at siphoning off large portions of their digital assets. Since value has been increasing and more people have joined the market, personal safety has turned greater, especially in the places where crypto traders are in a high number.

While the European crypto community is certainly no stranger to cyberattacks, scams, and phishing attempts, this new wave of physical crypto robberies represents a disturbing evolution in the kinds of crimes now targeting cryptocurrency holders. In July this year, for example, a British hacker was sentenced to prison for orchestrating a large-scale phishing scam targeting Coinbase account holders. All these cases highlight, not only the sophistication of cyber criminals but also the legal system’s growing resolve to address cryptocurrency-related crimes.

Unlike cyberattacks, where hardware wallets and two-factor authentication protect against identity theft, physical theft is far more difficult to ward off, let alone when bad guys actively target individuals based on personal holdings.

ZachXBT has noticed that, in many cases, these crypto robberies tend to happen in person, either during or after meetings with potential buyers, investors, or other traders. Since cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible, more and more criminals turn to violence or intimidation to obtain victims’ digital wallets in hopes of using physical presence for direct theft.

Crypto Robberies Escalate to Shootings, Traders at Risk

Crimes involving cryptocurrency have become even more dangerous, with some robberies escalating to shootings. This development of increased violence makes those prominent in the crypto space all the more worried, since attackers often target traders who have made their wealth or their identity online, allowing others to know them.

ZachXBT’s warnings show that extreme caution should be used with in-person high-value crypto transactions, as one’s even prominent reputation in the crypto community may attract an amount of unwanted—and even dangerous—attention.

Armed perpetrators have faced up to their targets in person and demanded access to digital wallets and storage devices holding the keys to their cryptocurrencies.

Crypto’s Dark Side: Blockchain Transparency Puts Owners at Risk

Even though the trend is particularly worrying in Europe, similar reports are surfacing periodically in cities such as Hong Kong and Singapore, meaning this is a global threat of physical violence against crypto owners, really, not a regional one.

Their crypto-friendly environments and growing importance as regional hubs for digital currency businesses make them a target for various criminal elements who want to take advantage of the accumulated wealth among local cryptocurrency enthusiasts. The eventual result in both regions is an increased physical security risk for those who are part of the crypto sphere.

This trend of crypto robberies, meaning robbery offline, shows that crypto owners have to be more careful, not only online but also in their day-to-day life.

This new kind of threat, rather disconcerting, involved physical violence against cryptocurrency holders, something with which the world of digital assets is experiencing, in addition to the already existing dangers of virtual attacks. The cases raise important questions regarding privacy and individual visibility within the area of cryptocurrency.

While incomparably transparent and of great value to the users, blockchain technology inadvertently may put them in physical jeopardy, given their wealth and transactions are highly visible to criminal elements.