Cybersecurity experts at Kaspersky are sounding the alarm over a new wave of scams exploiting the recent arrest of Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram. The scamsters are leveraging the high-profile news surrounding Durov’s arrest at a French airport to launch a sophisticated spam campaign.
These scammers are distributing emails that falsely claim to be fundraising for Durov’s legal defense and global awareness efforts. These scamsters pose as human rights organisations committed to Durov’s cause, urging recipients to donate to cryptocurrency wallets under the pretext of supporting his release.
The scam emails employ various names for the purported organisations, including the Human Rights Defenders Network (HRDN) and the Digital Rights Advocacy Network (DRAN). Despite these claims, Pavel Durov’s team has not announced any official fundraising campaigns, making these requests fraudulent. The emails often include cryptocurrency wallet addresses for Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and TRON (TRX), but any contributions made to these addresses will benefit the scammers, not Durov.
Kaspersky’s email security expert, Andrey Kovtun, advises caution: “Always rely on official communications and verified news sources. Never trust emails written in primitive language and format, especially when the official team has not announced any fundraising efforts. Your vigilance can protect you from falling victim to scams.”
To avoid falling victim to such scams, Kaspersky recommends several safety tips:
Verify the source: Confirm that donation requests come from official and trusted sources. Check the organisation’s website or contact them directly.
Watch for red flags: Be cautious of poor grammar, unusual formatting, and urgent language in emails or messages.
Double-check URLs and email addresses: Inspect URLs and email domains for subtle differences from legitimate ones.
Be cautious with cryptocurrency donations: Since cryptocurrency transactions are irreversible, be especially wary of donation requests through these channels.
Use security software: Keep your security software up to date to help detect and block spam campaigns and phishing attempts.
Rely on official announcements: Only trust official statements from the person or organisation in question. Lack of an official fundraising announcement is a strong indicator of a scam.
