Dubai Employee Steals $200,000 in Cryptocurrency Embezzlement Fraud

According to Dubai-based newspaper Khaleej Times, a cryptocurrency trading platform in the city caught its own employee stealing cryptocurrency for his personal use. Both the company as well as the convict were kept anonymous in the entire story.

The man was an expert in managing trading systems, which was why he deceived the software responsible for keeping a track of cryptocurrency transactions by various traders.

He would convert a small percentage of the currency being traded on the platform. Then, he would enter the database platform and upload false information into the fake virtual accounts to convert the currency to his own account and other cryptocurrency trading platforms.

The employer had no reason to suspect the employee as he himself had developed the cryptocurrency trading platform and earned laurels for it.

Initially, the company realized that cryptocurrency transactions were inconsistent and didn’t match the records in the system. But they couldn’t find the criminal because their security system was faulty and the entire team was using the administrator account to access the website. He was slowly accumulating the converted amount and was caught with further details on his personal computer. He had been using fake usernames and accounts while interacting with users (possible buyers) online. He wanted to purchase a house from the stolen Dhs 800,000 (roughly $0.2 Million), but his dreams were cut short when the company filed a lawsuit against him.

The information was collected by the Expertise and Disputes Settlement Department of the Dubai Ruler’s Court, who had hired an expert to “determine the extent of the fraud and the damages incurred by the company.”

UAE’s Stance on Cryptocurrencies

Last year, the Central Bank of UAE warned people regarding the use of cryptocurrencies because of the risks and phishing scams involved. While, the country hasn’t regulated or banned digital currencies yet, it hasn’t recognized it as a legal payment method either. The financial regulators also cautioned users who were planning to invest in ICOs against potential harmful and misleading projects – they even said that investors were at their own risk.

Bitcoin and ICOs are increasingly becoming a topic of interest in the country. According to Google Trends, UAE is one of the top 10 countries which have the highest rate of interest in bitcoin by region.

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