The FBI recently warned about a concerning trend where people are being tricked into cryptocurrency scams. These scams promise huge profits on investments but often leave victims with significant financial losses.
Last year, there was a surge in investment scams involving cryptocurrencies in the United States. The FBI highlighted this as a major source of financial losses due to fraud.
The FBI revealed a report about cryptocurrency scams worldwide rising by 53%. The losses from scams were around $2.57 billion in 2022 and $3.94 billion in 2023. The overall fraud on the investment is around 86% of the total of $4.57 billion.
People fall victim to crypto scams because of the promise of fast cash on their investments.
“These scams are designed to entice those targeted with the promise of lucrative returns on their investments,” the FBI reveals.
FBI Warns of Cryptocurrency Scams: Global Call to Action
Romance scams, where fraudsters create fake online personas to build trust and then trick victims into sending cryptocurrency, have become increasingly prevalent. According to Chainalysis, these scams led to suspected losses of at least $374 million in cryptocurrency in December 2023.
Additionally, phishing scams affected over 324,000 cryptocurrency users in 2023, resulting in losses of approximately $295 million, as reported by Cointelegraph on January 1, 2024.
Cryptocurrency scams aren’t just a problem in the US; they’re happening worldwide.
In Australia, reports show that people lost around AU$221.3 million (which is around $146.9 million) to cryptocurrency scams in 2022. This was a huge jump of 162.4% compared to the previous year.
This alarming increase in crypto scams highlights the importance of raising awareness and implementing stronger protections for investors everywhere.
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