What is the Pig Butchering Crypto Scam that security experts want investors to look out for- Technology News, Firstpost

Mehul Reuben DasDec 27, 2022 11:26:50 IST2022 wasn’t a great year for the crypto industry. Investors saw a huge chunk of their wealth get wiped out in a matter of days. While the

market stabilised a little towards August, the fall of crypto exchanges like FTX, and other trading platforms going bankrupt has shaken up the confidence of some of the most

seasoned investors as well. However early adopters of crypto will understand, that like all asset classes, investing in crypto is a game that has to be played in the long run.

Crypto is bound to bounce back up in a few years. It may not reach the record highs that we had seen during 2021, but it will be significantly higher than where it is today. 

Because crypto attracts all sorts of investors, and always has a sizeable portion of novice investors who are just starting out, scammers go out of their way to target them.  We

spoke to a cyber security expert to get the down low on pig-butchering, how the scam works, and what other scams should investors be wary of in 2023. What is the Pig-butchering

scam?Pig Butchering which is also known as Sha Zhu Pan is one of the fastest emerging scams that has plagued new crypto investors in 2022 and is expected to blow up massively next

year. “It is very prevalent on platforms where people discuss currency and trading,” says Satnam Narang, a Senior Staff Research Engineer with Tenable, one of the world’s

largest cybersecurity companies. The basic idea is to honeypot unsuspecting investors, using dating apps. “Scammers use apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, and even Tinder. The

scammers seek to gain the victims’ trust and develop fake relationships. The victims are then cajoled into investing in an instrument or a scheme that is bogus. Typically, the

instrument would be a cryptocurrency, but it may also include investing in Forex or some precious metal,” said Narang. The reason why this scam is called pig butchering is simple

– like a hog is fed generously to fatten it up before it is butchered, the victim in such scams is also overwhelmingly showered with love, before being scammed. How did the

pig-butchering scam originate? Is it prolific in India?“The scam started in China and has been widespread ever since. India is no stranger to such scams. The pig butchering scam

is a long con, which makes it hard to detect immediately or become apparent to victims,” said Narang. “This could be one of the reasons why many people have been duped,” he

added How does the pig-butchering scam work?The scammers engage their victims through false promises of a relationship and get them hooked. “This is the first step and is