Crypto scams Surge in Israel while Ai Tech fuels sophisticated fraud

Roger Federer is considered one of the richest tennis players in history. In addition to his 130 million dollar career earnings, he has approval agreements with brands like Uniqlo, Rolex, Mercedes and Credit Suisse. Its estimated net value is around $ 600 million.

According to the service staff, Israela explained that she and Federer had fallen in love and that he was planning a trip to Israel to meet her. The idea that she was scammed did not cross her mind – until the staff presented the harsh truth to her.

One of the most elaborate programs involved the X social media platform (formerly Twitter), where false videos circulated claiming to show the anchor of CNBC, Maria Bartiromo, interviewing US President Donald Trump. In the falsified clip, Trump urges viewers to join a “20 million dollars crypto” Giveaway Crypto “which, allegedly in collaboration with Elon Musk.

Participants were directed to a link that led to a false area, where users without distrust were led to transfer their money. It was only one of the dozens of scam areas – some recorded through anonymous accommodation services like Nicenic, which obscure the details of property and make the application difficult.

Avi Dayan, CEO and founder of Bitcoin Change, said that another widespread tactic involves false trading platforms. In these cases, the victims are approached by an supposed “investment advisor” via social media. The crook presents false investment formulas and promises high yields, supported by fabricated success reports.

In the initial phase, the victim is invited to send a modest sum to a crypto portfolio with the legitimate aspect linked to what seems to be a real exchange. After the first transfer, they are encouraged to invest more and have shown apparently profitable yields – until they try to withdraw their funds. At this point, they are told that they have to pay taxes to the foreign authorities before money can be released. But the money never happens.

To add the insult to the injury, many victims are contacted later by an alleged lawyer specializing in the recovery of lost cryptographic assets. The costs for these “services”? Just another part of the scam.

The tactics used by online crooks evolve quickly, the artificial intelligence now allowing the creation of almost perfect virtual characters which are difficult to distinguish real people, warn cybersecurity experts.

“We are witnessing a major change in crooking methods. In the past, they have relied on false websites and have published photos – they use advanced AI technologies to generate virtual figures that look exactly like reality, “said Yoav Keren, CEO of Brandsheld Israeli Cyber ​​Firm. “This represents a serious threat, which makes users more difficult to say what is real and what is false.”

Keren added that social media algorithms, which tend to promote content with familiar or intriguing characters, accelerate the spread of these scams – often without users taking the trouble to check their authenticity.

Dayan noted the challenge of waking up the victims of the illusion. “People simply put money without realizing that everything is a big false. It is very difficult to remove them. Because we are exploiting a face to face service, we can talk to people and warn them. I see the person in front of me – for me, it’s not just another transaction. ”

These scams have also contributed to the growing public in cryptographic investment.
“We certainly feel this fear among customers. But there is a big difference between putting your money in an exchange and keeping it in a private wallet. When your money is with a third party, the chances of being hacked are much higher than if it is in your personal wallet. I have been in this company for eight years, and I have never seen a private mobile portfolio.”

However, the challenges of the crypto of Israel extend beyond confidence. The industry remains hampered by the absence of clear regulations. There is no structured policy for cryptographic taxation, no legal framework to pay taxes in cryptocurrency, invest in companies based on cryptography or grant crypto options to employees. The Israeli banks largely refuse to support cryptographic transactions and regulators – notably the Bank of Israel, the tax authority and the authority of securities – must still implement complete rules.

Following a recent state controller report revealing that the government is losing billions of shekels due to unclear cryptographic taxes, the tax authority has issued a bill proposing that crypto be defined as an asset, with benefits subject to capital gains. The Ministry of Finance has also published a regulation project aimed at allowing the taxation of entities that negotiate in digital currencies.

Last month, the Knesset subcommittee on artificial intelligence and advanced technologies had a discussion on the issue. The president of the MK Orit Farkash-Hacohen committee, one of the few legislators who actively pushed cryptographic regulations, reminded participants that the previous government had formulated a policy to advance the regulations. Two years later, however, government representatives admitted that little or no progress had been made.

Nir Hirshman, CEO of the Israeli cryptocurrency forum, warned that without regulation, blockchain companies regularly leave Israel, with a quarter of them not engaging locally. Yuval Roash, CEO of Crypto Trading Platform Bits of Gold, shared the bureaucratic difficulties with which its customers are confronted with banks. Dayan added that he was waiting for seven years to receive a license from the Israeli capital markets.

Israeli government officials seem to be aligned with banks in their cautious approach to cryptocurrency, citing concerns about money laundering and financial stability, while hundreds of thousands of Israelis adopt digital currencies.

Ilanit Madmoni, head of the Innovation Unit Fintech at the Bank of Israel, said that the main concern for banks is the potential use of crypto trade for money laundering.

Hovav Elster of the chief division of economists from the Ministry of Finance added: “It is a question of risk management. The collapse of cryptographic societies presents real risks for consumers. ” Consequently, the provisional stages of the country towards the regulation of cryptography remain slow and fragmented.

Monitoring the number of Israelis who will hold cryptographic portfolios remains incoherent. According to the Bank of Israel, around 60,000 Israelis hold digital portfolios, with assets estimated at 1.5 billion dollars. However, the state controller report cited an estimate of the 200,000 portfolio holders, while the tax authority places the figure closer to 500,000.

During a recent Knesset audience, Roash said that his business alone has more than 250,000 Israeli customers and estimated that the total number of portfolio carriers could reach 600,000. Whatever the figure are citizens that the State can no longer ignore.

Bitcoin changes, the first Atm Crypto network in Israel, launched in 2017, when Bitcoin was negotiated at around 7,000 shekels. Today, according to market volatility and even Donald Trump’s statements, this price ranges around 300,000 shekels.

The cryptography market is extremely volatile. Do you feel it? How do people react to this volatility?
“Because we are exploiting physical branches, we are deeply in contact with the market. We see why people buy and sell. Some were rushing to sell when Bitcoin Pic. Others hear that it increases in the news and come to buy.”

Why do people still buy crypto with money rather than online?
“People always want a human touch. We serve experienced users, not just beginners. Most of our customers also negotiate exchanges like Binance. But Israeli credit card companies have blocked purchases from Binance, so that people come with cash – up to 5,000 shekels per transaction – to deposit automatic ticket distributors and finance their Binance accounts. And if someone has done a good business, they are welcome to sell their crypto for the species for the machine.

Banks often cite money money laundering problems. How do you approach this?
“From the first day, I established two rules: no anonymity – everyone must present a valid identity document. Second, we limit transactions to 10,000 shekels per day, 20,000 per week and 30,000 per month. No one walks with cash suitcases. “

Are you obliged to authorize more important transactions?
“Of course. We reject dozens of requests daily. If anyone is trying to whiten money – it’s not the place. There are many other places, such as Telegram. My approximate estimate? Tens of millions of shekels move there daily in black market agreements.