Bitrace Research Exposes Risks of Anonymous Online Markets with Cryptocurrency

Bitrace has recently revealed a worrying trend within the Telegram coin trading bot ecosystem, primarily involving the TRC20 USDT cryptocurrency.

This trend includes a substantial number of addresses associated with gambling, money laundering, stolen coins, and fraudulent activities, which can potentially contaminate the addresses of innocent users and expose them to financial threats.

Bitrace Research Reveals Concerns About Telegram Coin Exchange

A recent study from Bitrace Research has shed light on the alarming presence of player addresses, money laundering addresses, stolen coin addresses, and fraudulent addresses within anonymous online marketplaces, raising concerns about potential financial risks for users.

According to Bitrace research, Telegram's scalability has led to the proliferation of smart currency exchange robots. These robots allow automatic fund transfers, typically involving TRX/USDT pairs, allowing users to control the authority of the exchange address or act as agents. In any case, the exchange funds are linked to the trading address of the robot service provider.

An example of these risks can be seen at the address TRON TJS…3333333333. Bitrace's open source network intelligence identifies it as the payment address of an anonymous technical support team specialized in customizing TRON accounts and Telegram bots.

This address has received funds from 93 counterparties, with a substantial portion coming from risky activities such as gambling and money laundering. The subsequent transfer of these funds to exchange addresses further increases the risk.

Bitrace research reveals alarming trends in cryptocurrencies

Bitrace's research has also revealed other alarming areas of concern in the cryptocurrency space. There is a widespread practice among online gambling platforms of using customized “good accounts” through third-party tools such as business addresses to process bets, fund transfers and settlements. Unfortunately, many of these accounts accumulate risky funds, contaminating the service provider's address with gambling-related funds.

Additionally, a fraudulent scheme known as zero-transfer phishing is underway. raisewhere scammers initiate multiple transfers of small amounts to unspecified addresses, tricking users into copying payment addresses from previous transactions.

More sophisticated variations involve creating addresses with specific tail numbers, which poses risks to service providers if phishing funds end up in their payment addresses.

Bitrace's research highlights the financial risks of cryptocurrency transactions on anonymous online markets, particularly those involving Telegram coin trading robots using TRC20 USDT. As the appeal of anonymity remains, users should exercise caution when conducting these transactions to mitigate the risk of tainted addresses and financial harm.