The Federal Bureau of Investigations released a report chalking out the rise in the number of crypto fraud-related activities.
Details
- Users lost more than $5.6 billion last year via crypto-related fraud
- This marks a 45% jump from 2022
- The agency’s Internet Crime Complaint Center received around 69,500 complaints from consumers in the US and abroad last year
Why should you pay attention?
- Even though the number of crypto-related complaints represented only 10% of the aggregate number of financial fraud complaints, the associated losses weighed almost 50% of the total losses
- It is important to stay vigilant, know the go-to scam methods, and tread with caution
- The use of crypto by criminals was most pervasive in investment scams; losses accounted for almost 71% of the total
- Meanwhile, call center frauds like government impersonation scams accounted for 10% of crypto losses
Who said what?
Michael Nordwall, Assistant Director of the FBI Criminal Investigative Division, asserted,
“As the use of cryptocurrency in the global financial system continues to grow, so too does its use by criminal actors.”
He added,
“The decentralized nature of cryptocurrency, the speed of irreversible transactions, and the ability to transfer value around the world make cryptocurrency an attractive vehicle for criminals while creating challenges to recover stolen funds.”
Zooming out
- FBI officials say citizens of all ages are targeted via such scams
- They asked users to stay away from investment opportunities presented by people they have never met in real life
In other related news
- Regulators in the UK have also notched up their registration standards for crypto firms in a bid to shield users
- Firms have been struggling to get approvals owing to insufficiencies in their fraud protection and money laundering protocols
- Over 87% of crypto registrations were withdrawn, rejected, or refused last year due to poor practices
