Crypto Exchanges in Thailand Warned by SEC Against Glamorizing Investments, Emphasizing Ad Compliance
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Thailand is taking action to protect crypto investors from misleading advertisements.
In a recent warning issued on April 29, the Thai SEC urged all crypto exchanges to refrain from glamorizing crypto investments and to adhere to advertising standards, as reported by Bangkok Post.
Deputy Secretary-General Anek Yooyuen expressed concerns about crypto exchanges offering special privileges to attract users.
According to the report, any crypto advertisements that contain false, exaggerated, distorted, concealing, or misleading information are in violation of Thailand’s regulations.
Crackdown on Misleading Crypto Ads by Regulators
The actions taken by the Thai SEC align with similar measures implemented by regulators in other major crypto markets.
For example, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the United Kingdom issued 450 alerts for illegal crypto ads in 2023.
In November 2023, Spain’s National Stock Market Commission (CNMV) also called out fraudulent crypto asset promotions and emphasized the obligation of companies to comply with local laws.
The SEC reminded crypto exchanges to include appropriate warnings about investment risks in their advertisements and cautioned against using special promotions to onboard new users.
Yooyuen emphasized that the SEC’s advertising guidelines aim to protect investors from unnecessary risks. He stated that enticing users with rewards without considering investment risks, especially in the case of cryptocurrencies, can be problematic.
Violations of the guidelines will result in punishment according to the law.
Thai advertising guidelines require businesses and advertisers to substantiate the “facts” stated in their marketing campaigns, ensuring compliance with the country’s laws.
Hackers Exploit Ads on Etherscan
In a separate incident, hackers recently took control of advertisements on Etherscan, a popular blockchain explorer, redirecting users to phishing sites aimed at draining crypto wallets.
Blockchain investigation firm Scam Sniffer attributed the large-scale phishing campaign to a lack of oversight from advertisement aggregators. They stated that platforms like Coinzilla and Persona, from which Etherscan aggregates ads, have insufficient filtering, exposing users to phishing attempts.
The wallet drainer scam involves tricking users into visiting fake websites and linking their crypto wallets, allowing scammers to withdraw funds into their own wallet addresses without user authentication or permission.
Last week, Google Ads, Google’s online advertising platform, also promoted malicious crypto websites, putting users at risk of falling victim to a phishing scam.
As previously reported, threat actors exploited Google Ads to advertise a fake version of Whales Market, an over-the-counter (OTC) crypto platform that facilitates airdropped token trading.
The compromised version of the website appeared as a sponsored ad at the top of Google search results, luring unsuspecting users into the trap.
Earlier this month, Google filed a lawsuit against two individuals from China, Yunfeng Sun and Hongnam Cheung, for using the Google Play store to deceive people into fake crypto investments.
While the lawsuit did not disclose the specific names of the implicated applications, Google revealed that it had deactivated 87 fraudulent apps associated with Sun and Cheung over the past four years.