Scams with USDT threaten the Caves of Argentina

In recent days, scams have been reported to Argentina’s “caves”, where dollars and cryptocurrencies are purchased informally. These places are usually very frequented, since the southern country has crossed several periods with exchange restrictions.

The situation was described in the social network X by the user Pablo Sabbatella, a specialist in digital security issues. According to Sabbatella, for several months there are a couple of individuals who have dedicated themselves to cheating caves and similar sites. Those involved first usually approach cars or real estate agencies, indicating that they need to buy USDT – generally between USD 35,000 and USD 150,000— using dollars in cash.

Then, these companies, interested in facilitating their users’s life, recommend them with their “trusted cave”; that is, with people who usually change dollars informally and regularly. The alleged scammers who go through customers then contact these places as “referred”, and claim that, as in the past they wanted to cheat them, they want to verify that the place really has the USDT in custody. Then they ask to make a video called to watch the wallet.

Thus, Sabbatella emphasizes that “most caves in Buenos Aires operate with the Tron network and use Trust Wallet,” which considers a bad practice. The wallet in question includes an internal browser, allowing the user to interact with various pages related to cryptocurrencies directly from the application. In these video calls, The alleged scammers guide a representative of the cave to open this browser and access the address «https: // USDT. Report »a site that is actually part of the fraud process.

Once the representatives of the cave access the website, the alleged criminals ask them to carry out a “fund verification process.” During this step, it is requested that they accept what Sabbatella qualifies as an “Allowance”, which in simple terms means granting permits to an external address so that it can access the funds. Once the permit is accepted, in just a few seconds the wallet can empty.

Sabbatella ends its publication giving a series of general recommendations, among which it stands out «Do not use Trustwallet when more than USDT 5,000 are handled» »since, in his opinion, “there are much safer options, such as Wallet Hardware.”

To protect themselves from this type of scams, it is recommended that, when closing a deal, access permits to external addresses are never granted. In addition, it is essential to investigate the people involved in the transaction, ensuring Know about your reputation and background. You can learn more about how to recognize and protect yourself from scams with cryptocurrencies in our cryptopedia on the subject.

Although Argentina recently eliminated several exchange rate restrictions for natural persons, the caves will continue to be a popular option among users due to their long career. In addition, for those who use cryptocurrencies, they represent a viable alternative, since banks do not yet offer their purchase and many prefer to avoid local exchanges – the Argentine Treasury receives information from them. However, experts believe that the relationship between banking institutions and the sector could improve soon.