2024 Sees 83% Spike in Crypto Scams and 3.6x Rise in Mobile Malware: Kaspersky Report

The latest report from Kaspersky on financial cyber threats states that in 2024, with the surge of financial digital activity, cybercriminals automatically expanded into mobile devices and crypto scams. Mobile banking Trojan increased by 3.6 times compared to the previous year, accounting for a total of 247,949 in 2024. The year also saw a dramatic increase in crypto scams, with over 10.7 million detections compared to 5.8 million detections in 2023, which is an 83% increase.

While attacks on traditional PC banking malware declined, there was a noticeable rise in threats targeting crypto assets. Banking Trojans like ClipBanker and Grandoreiro were among the most detected. Grandoreiro alone targeted over 1,700 banks and 276 crypto wallets globally. Phishing scams mimicking financial institutions also became more sophisticated.

Banks were the most frequently used bait, at 42.6% of financial phishing lures. Amazon was the most common online shopping brand used in scams, followed by Netflix and Alibaba. Payment systems, such as PayPal and Mastercard, were also regularly used as bait. Although PayPal-related phishing scams decreased from 54.7% to 37.5%, attacks targeting Mastercard nearly doubled.

Experts are warning users to remain on high alert, advising them to avoid suspicious links, implement multi-factor authentication, and activate trusted security software. In addition, businesses are encouraged to reinforce their cybersecurity policies and to improve employee education around ever-evolving threats.

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