How to spot a Wallet Connect scam website

What is WalletConnect scam?

We have discovered this scam website while examining other sites that use rogue advertising networks. After analyzing this scam, we concluded that the purpose of this scam is to trick visitors into believing that it is a legitimate WalletConnect page and providing a private key or wallet seed words.

WalletConnect scam website in detail

Scammers behind this page attempt to trick users into believing that they can use it to communicate securely between wallets and dapps (to connect blockchain wallets to decentralized applications). We have examined this scam and arrived at a judgment that scammers use it to steal private keys and (or) wallet seed words/crypto wallets.

Whoever encounters this scam should report it to SafeBrowsing phishing service (a service from Google). Victims of this scam should transfer their assets to a new wallet and never use the compromised wallet again.

Threat Summary:

Name	Fake WalletConnect website
Threat Type	Phishing, Scam, Social Engineering, Fraud
Disguise	Legitimate WalletConnect website
Related Domains	tokensauthorization[.]co, dappsaccreditation[.]com, validatedefi[.]xyz
Detection Names (tokensauthorization[.]co)	ESTsecurity-Threat Inside (Phishing), Fortinet (Spam), Kaspersky (Phishing), Netcraft (Malicious), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Detection Names (dappsaccreditation[.]com)	Forcepoint ThreatSeeker (Phishing), G-Data (Phishing), Kaspersky (Phishing), OpenPhish (Phishing), Sophos (Malware), Full List Of Detections (VirusTotal)
Symptoms	Fake error messages, fake system warnings, pop-up errors, hoax computer scan.
Distribution methods	Compromised websites, rogue online pop-up ads, potentially unwanted applications.
Damage	Loss of sensitive private information, monetary loss, identity theft, possible malware infections.
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Similar scams in general

Crypto-related scam websites usually are virtually identical to the official sites. It is important to check the website URL before provoding any personal information on it. A couple examples of similar scams are "Coinbase POP-UP Scam", "Wallet Access Connect POP-UP Scam", and "METAMASK POP-UP Scam".

How did I open a scam website

Typically, pop-up scams (websites designed to deliver them) are promoted using search engine poisoning techniques, shady advertisements, and websites that use questionable advertising networks, fake "Download" (or similar) buttons. In all cases, scam websites rarely get opened intentionally.

How to avoid visiting scam pages?

Do not visit illegal movie streaming, torrent sites and similar pages (or click ads that appear on them). Download applications and files from legitimate sources such as official pages and direct links. Avoid using P2P networks, unofficial pages, third-party downloaders, and similar sources.

If your computer is infected with unwanted apps or you constantly encounter pop-up scams we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate them.

The appearance of WalletConnect scam website (GIF):

Text in this scam page:

WalletConnect
Open protocol for connecting Wallets to Dapps
wallet connect banner diagram
What is Is WalletConnect?
WalletConnect is an open source protocol for connecting decentralised applications to mobile wallets with QR code scanning or deep linking. A user can interact securely with any Dapp from their mobile phone, making WalletConnect wallets a safer choice compared to desktop or browser extension wallets.

How does it work?
WalletConnect connects web applications to supported mobile wallets WalletConnect session is started by a scanning a QR code (desktop) or by clicking an application deep link (mobile).

Validate Tokens in Wallet now

You can also enable wallet connect for your multiple iOS and Android wallets protocol.

Connect to walletconnect now

Appearance of another WalletConnect scam website (GIF):

Text in this page:

Wallets
Multiple iOS and Android wallets support the protocol. Simply scan a QR code from your desktop computer screen to start securely using a dApp with your mobile wallet. Interaction between mobile apps and mobile browsers are supported via mobile deep linking.

Screenshot of this scam page:

Another example of WalletConnect-themed scam website:

Yet another example of a WalletConnect-themed scam website (walletverification.pages[.]dev):

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Quick menu:

• What is Fake WalletConnect website?
• How to identify a pop-up scam?
• How do pop-up scams work?
• How to remove fake pop-ups?
• How to prevent fake pop-ups?
• What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

How to identify a pop-up scam?

Pop-up windows with various fake messages are a common type of lures cybercriminals use. They collect sensitive personal data, trick Internet users into calling fake tech support numbers, subscribe to useless online services, invest in shady cryptocurrency schemes, etc.

While in the majority of cases these pop-ups don't infect users' devices with malware, they can cause direct monetary loss or could result in identity theft.

Cybercriminals strive to create their rogue pop-up windows to look trustworthy, however, scams typically have the following characteristics:

• Spelling mistakes and non-professional images - Closely inspect the information displayed in a pop-up. Spelling mistakes and unprofessional images could be a sign of a scam.
• Sense of urgency - Countdown timer with a couple of minutes on it, asking you to enter your personal information or subscribe to some online service.
• Statements that you won something - If you haven't participated in a lottery, online competition, etc., and you see a pop-up window stating that you won.
• Computer or mobile device scan - A pop-up window that scans your device and informs of detected issues - is undoubtedly a scam; webpages cannot perform such actions.
• Exclusivity - Pop-up windows stating that only you are given secret access to a financial scheme that can quickly make you rich.

Example of a pop-up scam:

How do pop-up scams work?

Cybercriminals and deceptive marketers usually use various advertising networks, search engine poisoning techniques, and shady websites to generate traffic to their pop-ups. Users land on their online lures after clicking on fake download buttons, using a torrent website, or simply clicking on an Internet search engine result.

Based on users' location and device information, they are presented with a scam pop-up. Lures presented in such pop-ups range from get-rich-quick schemes to fake virus scans.

How to remove fake pop-ups?

In most cases, pop-up scams do not infect users' devices with malware. If you encountered a scam pop-up, simply closing it should be enough. In some cases scam, pop-ups may be hard to close; in such cases - close your Internet browser and restart it.

In extremely rare cases, you might need to reset your Internet browser. For this, use our instructions explaining how to reset Internet browser settings.

How to prevent fake pop-ups?

To prevent seeing pop-up scams, you should visit only reputable websites. Torrent, Crack, free online movie streaming, YouTube video download, and other websites of similar reputation commonly redirect Internet users to pop-up scams.

To minimize the risk of encountering pop-up scams, you should keep your Internet browsers up-to-date and use reputable anti-malware application. For this purpose, we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.

What to do if you fell for a pop-up scam?

This depends on the type of scam that you fell for. Most commonly, pop-up scams try to trick users into sending money, giving away personal information, or giving access to one's device.

• If you sent money to scammers: You should contact your financial institution and explain that you were scammed. If informed promptly, there's a chance to get your money back.
• If you gave away your personal information: You should change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication in all online services that you use. Visit Federal Trade Commission to report identity theft and get personalized recovery steps.
• If you let scammers connect to your device: You should scan your computer with reputable anti-malware (we recommend Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows) - cyber criminals could have planted trojans, keyloggers, and other malware, don't use your computer until removing possible threats.
• Help other Internet users: report Internet scams to Federal Trade Commission.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is a pop-up scam?

A pop-up scam is a fake/deceptive message designed to trick users into performing certain actions. Usually, it is a fake virus or error notification claiming that a computer is infected or damaged and encouraging to solve the problem immediately. Websites can display very different pop-up scams.

What is the purpose of a pop-up scam?

In most cases, the purpose of a pop-up scam is to trick visitors into providing personal/sensitive information, installing unwanted software, infecting computers with malware, paying money for unnecessary services or products.

Why do I encounter fake pop-ups?

Typically, pop-up scams are encountered while visiting shady websites or after clicking on deceptive advertisements. In some cases, it happens after clicking on a result generated by a search engine. In all cases, users do not visit pages that deliver pop-up scams on purpose.

Will Combo Cleaner protect me from pop-up scams?

Combo Cleaner is designed to scan websites and detect malicious ones. Pages designed to deliver pop-up scams also fall under this category. Thus, you will be warned immediately, and the access will be restricted.

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