Tech
Google sued two Chinese citizens for listing 87 fake crypto Android apps and deceiving 100,000 users worldwide
Tech giant Google has filed a lawsuit against two Chinese citizens, accusing them of defrauding over 100,000 users worldwide through fake cryptocurrency app on the Google Play Store.
The lawsuit targets Yunfeng Sun (also known as Alphonse Sun) and Hongnam Cheung (also known as Zhang Hongnim or Stanford Fischer), claiming they have been running the program since 2019. Google claims the pair made “false statements” to make it work their apps. in the Play Store, including their identity, location, and app functionality.
“This is a unique opportunity for us to fight back against bad actors who staged a major crypto scam to steal from our users,” Google general counsel Halimah DeLaine Prado said, according to CNBC.
Prado highlighted the lawsuit’s role in protecting users and deterring future scams, citing over a billion dollars lost to cryptocurrency scams in the US alone in 2023.
The lawsuit claims that the apps were designed to deceive users. Victims reportedly saw false returns on investments within the apps, but were ultimately unable to withdraw their money.
Sun and Cheung allegedly attracted users through various methods: sending text messages via Google Voice, posting promotional videos on social media platforms such as Youtube, and conducting affiliate marketing campaigns. The text messages, according to court documents, “pretended to be from the wrong numbers” with the scammers initiating trust-building conversations with the victims.
Google claims that after removing the fraudulent apps, the defendants created new ones using different accounts and disguising their identities. The lawsuit seeks more than $75,000 in damages and a permanent ban on the defendants and their associates from using Google accounts or services.