Crypto giants co-launch Chainabuse platform to water down rising scams

Seven major crypto companies — Binance.US, Circle, Solana Foundation, The Aave Companies, Hedera, TRM Labs and Civic — joined hands to launch a community-driven scam reporting tool. Named Chainabuse, the tool aims to enable crypto users to issue warnings and discuss ongoing fraudulent activity such as scams and hacks in real-time. 

Launched on Wednesday, the Chainabuse platform aims to counter the ongoing scams plaguing the crypto ecosystem. On May 4, Cointelegraph warned the community about the rise in Ape-themed airdrop phishing scams.

Chainabuse serves as a one-stop-shop platform for crypto users, victims of financial crimes and crypto businesses to actively report, discuss and issue warnings and ultimately reduce the effectiveness of the scam.

In the announcement, TRM Labs highlighted that crypto companies often issue warnings on social media platforms such as Twitter and Discord that are easily missed and difficult to keep track of. However, companies and crypto investors can use Chainabuse’s public forums to upvote, downvote and leave comments to provide additional information about a reported illicit activity.

The free-to-use platform also maintains a database of illicit activities that, in the future, can be used by crypto users to investigate projects before making an investment. Joe McGill, Chainabuse’s chief architect and former U.S. Secret Service and Postal Investigator, called attention to the numerous instances when crypto communities came together “to root out bad actors and help protect each other,” adding:

“Chainabuse was designed to make it easier for more people to play an active role in advancing that culture.”

Moreover, all the representatives of the seven crypto companies stressed the importance of safeguarding the interests and people of the crypto community — pointing out that fear of rug pulls and being hacked hampers the overall adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Related: Binance takes legal action against fake billboard ads in Turkey

The Turkish arm of crypto exchange Binance recently took an offensive stance against scammers that were found to be using billboards to advertise fake Binance-branded investment opportunities.

Bir süredir Türkiye’nin farklı bölgelerinde aşağıdaki görsele benzer reklam panoları göze çarpmaktadır.

Aşağıdaki görselin #Binance ile ilgisi yoktur❗️

Dolandırıcılık faaliyeti içinde oldukları açıkça belli olan kişiler hakkında gerekli hukuki süreçler başlatılmıştır.#SAFU pic.twitter.com/znvJDLRP7v

— Binance Türkiye (@Binance_Turkish) May 8, 2022

In the latest warning issued by Binance Turkey, the billboard is shown sporting an advertisement for the “Binance Tourist xchange,” which has no affiliation with the original Binance, founded by Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. On April 15, Binance launched its first 24/7 customer service center in Turkey as it prepares to expand the service worldwide.