Hong Kong has witnessed a surge in phishing scams targeting Binance users, prompting local law enforcement to issue a cautionary advisory.<h2 id="header-0">CyberDefender warning</h2>The warning was issued by Hong Kong police via its CyberDefender<a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid&#61;352913033756045&amp;set&#61;a.184734933907190" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> Facebook page</a> on Monday. Over the past two weeks, at least 11 Binance customers in Hong Kong fell victim to phishing scams, collectively losing over $446,000 (equivalent to HKD 3.5 million). These scams primarily involve fraudulent text messages.According to Hong Kong police, these fraudulent text messages claim to be from Binance and ask users to verify their accounts by clicking on a link provided within the message. On Facebook, the warning<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/hong-kong-binance-users-phishing-scam-jpex-crypto-scandal" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> stated</a>:“Recently, fraudsters posing as Binance sent text messages claiming that users must click the link in the message to verify their identity details before a deadline, otherwise their account would be deactivated.”Upon clicking the phishing link and entering their login credentials to “verify” their accounts, victims unwittingly grant fraudsters full access to their Binance accounts. This modus operandi mirrors the tactics commonly employed in phishing scams.<h2 id="header-1">CZ chimes in</h2>Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) also joined in the cautionary chorus, issuing a<a href="https://x.com/cz_binance/status/1711303572464271772?s&#61;20" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> warning</a> to customers on his X account.The crypto sector in Hong Kong has been facing challenges recently, largely related to the recent<a href="https://medium.com/&#64;coinness.gl/further-jpex-controversy-due-to-dao-plan-a8194288e06b" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> JPEX fraud case</a>. The losses incurred from the JPEX exchange scandal have swelled to an estimated $180 million, with over 2,300 victims filing complaints with local authorities.The JPEX scandal led to multiple<a href="https://medium.com/&#64;coinness.gl/crypto-influencer-arrested-in-hong-kong-over-jpex-association-b089cc8026aa" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> arrests</a> in Hong Kong and prompted authorities to intensify their efforts against illegal crypto activities. The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong introduced regulations mandating the licensing of all crypto exchanges operating within its jurisdiction earlier this year.To date, only two exchanges, HashKey and OSL, have<a href="https://medium.com/&#64;coinness.gl/hashkey-report-outlines-risks-of-liquid-staking-fbb0b74d56de" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> secured licenses</a> under this regulatory framework. Numerous other crypto exchanges in Hong Kong have submitted license applications, but Dubai-headquartered JPEX, despite heavily promoting its application for a Hong Kong license, failed to submit an application to the local regulator. In the wake of the JPEX scandal, the SFC published a<a href="https://medium.com/&#64;coinness.gl/hong-kong-takes-steps-to-enhance-crypto-platform-oversight-71af80833e4d" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> comprehensive list</a> of companies seeking crypto licenses and expanded its list of suspicious platforms.Cyber security firm Kaspersky<a href="https://medium.com/&#64;coinness.gl/kaspersky-says-crypto-phishing-on-the-rise-in-the-philippines-99a10f09a681" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> found</a> earlier this year that phishing related to crypto trading is on the rise in Asia, particularly in the Philippines. Binance’s CZ has had to issue warnings where phishing is concerned on previous occasions.<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/cz-binance-ceo-warns-of-phishing-scams-as-uniswap-founder-gets-hacked" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> He did so</a> in July when the founder of decentralized crypto exchange (DEX) Uniswap was hacked.In February of last year, CZ came out again to<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/scam-alert-binance-ceo-warns-users-of-massive-sms-phishing-scam" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> warn users</a> of a massive SMS-related crypto phishing scam. Back in 2018 a<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/58a32050-22aa-11e8-add1-0e8958b189ea" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> serious attempt</a> was made to compromise the credentials of Binance platform users via phishing techniques.As phishing scams continue to pose a significant threat to crypto users in Hong Kong, and with the aftermath of the JPEX debacle still reverberating through the industry, vigilance and caution remain paramount for participants in the region’s crypto ecosystem.

Hong Kong Police Issue Warning as Binance Users Lose Funds to Phishing Scam

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