KuCoin Fake Exchange Website

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KuCoin

KuCoin reported that a fake website was set up to phish their platform users. This would be used to steal login information of platform users, leading towards a theft of funds.

This exchange or platform is based in Singapore, or the incident targeted people primarily in Singapore.

About KuCoin

"Behind KuCoin are two tech geeks who were early blockchain adopters. Having started coding at the age of 8 and founded his first startup at the age of 16, Michael heard about Bitcoin in 2012 from his boss Eric, and immediately started to mine. While he tried to sell some BTC on Mt. Gox, he discovered that, what was the world's largest platform at the time, was difficult for beginners to use. As the adoption of blockchain continued, Michael and Eric realized that it was reshaping the financial system, building a new system that not only serves the few richest, but everyone in the world - even the uneducated, unemployed and unbanked. By the end of 2013, they wrote down the first code in a cafe, beginning the journey of People’s Exchange to allow everyone to get involved with crypto."

"KuCoin is a well-known name in the crypto industry as it managed to establish itself as a prominent one-stop shop for all sorts of crypto operations. Launched in August 2017, the exchange has over 200 cryptocurrencies, more than 400 markets, and has grown into one of the most colorful crypto hubs online."

"The KuCoin platform was designed for investors of all types, with 24/7 world-class services in your preferred channel and language." "KuCoin is the most advanced and secure cryptocurrency exchange to buy and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, TRON, USDT, NEO, XRP, KCS, and more."

"KuCoin boasts one of the world's most sophisticated security technology and maintenance team, and is constantly upgrading our security systems to ensure the safety of user assets and accounts."

"KuCoin is a global cryptocurrency exchange that was launched three years ago. It is among the world’s largest ones, with a user base of more than five million users from almost all the countries in the world."

"Per some sources, 25 percent of owners of various cryptocurrencies have purchased them on KuCoin. The exchange offers their users spot and futures trading, besides the purchase of cryptocurrencies for fiat or other cryptos."

"KuCoin group has just published a public notice advising its users about the reported fishing website’s identity. Users are warned that https://kucoin-exchange.net is a fraudulent domain and not associated with the KuCoin Group."

"The warning stipulates that the group has no relationship with the individual or group behind this domain and never had any connection. It also defines behavior that users should adopt to avoid these types of frauds."

"The KuCoin Group has received several reports from users that a website is using the KuCoin trademark to operate a phishing website with the intent to steal the sign-in credentials of KuCoin users."

"The KuCoin Group hereby declares and clarifies:"

"1. “https://kucoin-exchange.net” is a fraudulent website;"

"2. “https://kucoin-exchange.net” has no relationship with the KuCoin Group, and the KuCoin Group has never authorized the platform to use the KuCoin trademark and other intellectual property;"

"3. To avoid these websites, we strongly recommend that you do the following:"

"a) Be extremely cautious when clicking unknown links (Examples: links shared on social networking sites, Telegram groups and search engines) with domain names similar to KuCoin’s official website."

"b) Always use KuCoin official website (www.kucoin.com and ) to sign in and trade."

"c) Add KuCoin’s official website to your browser’s bookmarks to reduce your chances of encountering phishing sites."

"d) Clear your browser’s cookies, and reset your KuCoin sign-in password if you have clicked suspicious links."

This exchange or platform is based in Singapore, or the incident targeted people primarily in Singapore.

The background of the exchange platform, service, or individuals involved, as it would have been seen or understood at the time of the events.

Include:

• Known history of when and how the service was started.
• What problems does the company or service claim to solve?
• What marketing materials were used by the firm or business?
• Audits performed, and excerpts that may have been included.
• Business registration documents shown (fake or legitimate).
• How were people recruited to participate?
• Public warnings and announcements prior to the event.

Don't Include:

• Any wording which directly states or implies that the business is/was illegitimate, or that a vulnerability existed.
• Anything that wasn't reasonably knowable at the time of the event.

There could be more than one section here. If the same platform is involved with multiple incidents, then it can be linked to a main article page.

The Reality

This sections is included if a case involved deception or information that was unknown at the time. Examples include:

• When the service was actually started (if different than the "official story").
• Who actually ran a service and their own personal history.
• How the service was structured behind the scenes. (For example, there was no "trading bot".)
• Details of what audits reported and how vulnerabilities were missed during auditing.

What Happened

The specific events of the loss and how it came about. What actually happened to cause the loss and some of the events leading up to it.

Key Event Timeline - KuCoin Fake Exchange Website

Date	Event	Description
September 23rd, 2020	Main Event	Expand this into a brief description of what happened and the impact. If multiple lines are necessary, add them here.

Technical Details

This section includes specific detailed technical analysis of any security breaches which happened. What specific software vulnerabilities contributed to the problem and how were they exploited?

Total Amount Lost

The total amount lost is unknown.

How much was lost and how was it calculated? If there are conflicting reports, which are accurate and where does the discrepancy lie?

Immediate Reactions

How did the various parties involved (firm, platform, management, and/or affected individual(s)) deal with the events? Were services shut down? Were announcements made? Were groups formed?

Ultimate Outcome

What was the end result? Was any investigation done? Were any individuals prosecuted? Was there a lawsuit? Was any tracing done?

Total Amount Recovered

There do not appear to have been any funds recovered in this case.

What funds were recovered? What funds were reimbursed for those affected users?

Ongoing Developments

What parts of this case are still remaining to be concluded?

General Prevention Policies

Phishing works because users will regularly log in, and often don't give a second thought to the routine task. The best protection against loss of funds is to have additional specialized factors required on large withdrawals or trading, such as a separate trading/withdrawal password and hardware-based 2FA system. By having a different system from the login system, it's very clear to users that a withdrawal or trade is being attempted on their behalf, and their funds are much more likely to stay safe. Adding delays on withdrawals, increasing education, and enabling users to appoint friends or family in approval roles would also give users tools. For the occasional attack which is still successful, our proposed industry insurance fund would be avalable to assist.

Individual Prevention Policies

No specific policies for individual prevention have yet been identified in this case.

For the full list of how to protect your funds as an individual, check our Prevention Policies for Individuals guide.

Platform Prevention Policies

Policies for platforms to take to prevent this situation have not yet been selected in this case.

For the full list of how to protect your funds as a financial service, check our Prevention Policies for Platforms guide.

Regulatory Prevention Policies

No specific regulatory policies have yet been identified in this case.

For the full list of regulatory policies that can prevent loss, check our Prevention Policies for Regulators guide.