UAE Authorities Announce New Stringent Measures Against Crypto Scammers

Under stringent new UAE regulations designed to safeguard the public from financial fraud, cyber criminals who promote cryptocurrency frauds online face up to five years in prison and fines of up to $272 million.

Promoters of online cryptocurrency frauds now risk a possible five-year prison sentence and a maximum fine of almost $270,000 under the UAE’s new internet security regulations, which take effect on January 2, 2022.

The crackdown was announced last month as part of President Sheikh Khalifa’s series of broad legal reforms.

The new law expands the country’s existing cyber-crime rules to include the promotion of rogue cryptocurrency schemes that are not recognized by UAE authorities.

Despite the fact that many countries routinely issue warnings in this area, the UAE government has decided to take it a step further by imposing hefty penalties on those who violate the law. Cybercriminals who promote cryptocurrency frauds on the internet risk up to 5 years in prison and a fine of up to 1 million DH ($272,259), as the country’s government has strengthened its regulations to protect residents from cyber fraud.

“As per article 48, posting misleading ads or inaccurate data online about a certain product will be punishable with jail and/or a fine between Dh20,000 and Dh500,000,” said Dr Hassan Elhais, of Al Rowaad Advocates, who outlined new legislation tackling cyptocurrency scams.

“The same penalty applies to members of the public who promote cryptocurrencies unrecognised by authorities in the country.”

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Despite strong regulation and a crypto-friendly climate, UAE citizens have continued to be victims of financial crime. In fact, in the first half of 2021, consumers in Dubai alone lost about 80 million DH in hundreds of such frauds. The UAE police responded by issuing warnings to people about bogus cryptocurrency trading and profit-making schemes.

Regardles, DubaiCoin was one of the most intricate phishing frauds the city had to deal with. The digital asset was marketed as having government backing, and investors jumped at the chance, causing its value to skyrocket in a short amount of time.

Others have not been so fortunate, as nine individuals from the country were sentenced to ten years in prison earlier this month for defrauding people out of 18 million DH through a get-rich-quick bitcoin trading scheme.

When it comes to creating a comprehensive and inclusive crypto framework, the UAE is at the forefront. The Dubai World Trade Center was declared both a comprehensive crypto zone and a regulator earlier this month, allowing it to create an enormous hub for the sector’s expansion.

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