According to the FBI, Americans were defrauded of greater than $5.6 billion in cryptocurrency scams last yr. a report published on Monday This shows a forty five% increase in losses from 2022.
According to the FBI, nearly 70,000 complaints were received in 2023 from victims of monetary fraud related to Bitcoin, Ether and other cryptocurrencies. The most typical was investment fraud, which accounted for $3.96 billion of the losses.
“The decentralized nature of cryptocurrency, the speed of irreversible transactions, and the ability to transfer value around the world make cryptocurrencies an attractive vehicle for criminals, but at the same time create challenges in recovering stolen funds,” wrote Michael Nordwall, deputy director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigation Division.
Scammers often make contact through dating apps or social media to construct trust over several weeks or months before suggesting cryptocurrency investments, in accordance with the FBI. Once the connection is established, they persuade victims to make use of fake web sites or apps to take a position their money. Sometimes they even allow victims to withdraw small amounts of cash early on to make it seem legitimate.
In some cases, these victims are then targeted by fake firms that claim to assist victims get well lost cryptocurrency, in accordance with the FBI.
FBI officials say Americans of all ages might be the goal of such scams and must be extremely cautious when offered investment opportunities by people they’ve never met in real life.
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