Scams
Government Needs ‘Additional Tools and Resources’ To Crack Down on Crypto, Says Treasury Official
An official with the United States Department of the Treasury says rooting out illicit finance by players in the crypto industry calls for additional tools and resources. In his written testimony for a House Financial Services Committee hearing, Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI) Brian Nelson says published risk assessments of virtual […]
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CFTC Charges Crypto Exchange Debiex With Fraud and Misappropriation for Running ‘Online Romance’ Scam
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) says it is taking legal action against a “bogus” crypto exchange for allegedly defrauding investors using a pig-butchering scheme. Pig butchering is a type of romance scam that involves sending targeted victims unsolicited messages on social media, dating apps or through text messages to build relationships and gain […]
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Frantic Customer Calls JPMorgan Chase As $10,700 Exits Bank Account – Now the Banking Giant Says It’s Not To Blame: Report
Banking giant JPMorgan Chase is reportedly refusing to make a customer whole after thousands of dollars exited her account in a slick banking scam. Colorado resident Betsy Rich says she received a text message last month asking her to authorize a $1,700 transaction from her JPMorgan Chase account, reports the ABC-affiliated news station KMGH. After […]
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Nearly $300,000,000 in Losses Recorded in 2023 Due to Crypto Phishing Scams, According to Cybersecurity Firm
Crypto phishing scams facilitated the theft of more than $295 million worth of assets in 2023, according to the cybersecurity firm Scam Sniffer. In a new analysis, Scam Sniffer notes that phishing websites employ a type of crypto-malware known as “wallet drainers” that trick victims into greenlighting malicious transactions. Roughly 324,000 crypto holders fell victim […]
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Founder of Crypto Wallet Says He Lost $125,000 Worth of Coins After Falling for Fake Airdrop Scam
The co-founder of a crypto wallet says he has been “devastated” by accidentally clicking on a fake airdrop scam. Nest Wallet co-founder Bill Lou says he recently lost over $123,000 in staked Ethereum (stETH) while trying to participate in an airdrop. On the social media platform X, Lou shares his story, noting that fell victim to […]
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Web3 Projects Lose $2,020,000,000 in 2023 to Hacks, Rug Pulls and Phishing Attacks: Crypto Security Firm
Web3 projects lost more than $2 billion in 2023 to hacks, rug pulls and phishing scams, according to the blockchain security firm Beosin. In a new annual report, the crypto security firm notes 191 major attacks this year resulted in roughly $1.397 billion in losses, 267 rug pulls caused $388 million in losses, and phishing […]
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Crypto catfishers ditch fake exchanges for approval phishing scams
According to on-chain analytics firm Chainalysis, romance scammers increasingly use this method to steal their victim’s hard-earned crypto.
Crypto romance scammers — a cohort of crypto-stealing smooth-talkers — appear to have a new trick up their sleeves: targeted approval phishing.
In a Dec. 14 report from on-chain analytics firm Chainalysis, the firm noted that the technique has seen explosive growth over the past two years, with at least $374 million in suspected stolen crypto in 2023.
Approval phishing is a crypto scam where victims are tricked into signing transactions that give scammers access to wallets, allowing them to drain funds. While this isn’t new, Chainalysis said the technique is now utilized more often by pig-butchering scammers.
IRS lists 4 crypto crimes among its top cases in 2023
The cases included investigations into the Silk Road marketplace, OneCoin, Oyster Protocol founder “Bruno Block,” and a money laundering scheme using Bitcoin kiosks.
The criminal investigation unit of the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has listed four crypto-related cases among the top ten of its “most prominent and high-profile investigations” in 2023.
In a Dec. 11 notice, the IRS unit said there were four significant cases in 2023 involving the seizure of cryptocurrency, fraudulent practices, money laundering and other schemes. Coming in at its third most high-profile investigation in the past year was OneCoin co-founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in September for his role in marketing and selling a fraudulent crypto asset.
Other cases included Ian Freeman, a New Hampshire resident sentenced to 8 years in prison for operating a money laundering scheme using Bitcoin (BTC) kiosks and failing to pay taxes from 2016 to 2019. The government body was also behind an investigation of Oyster Protocol founder Amir Elmaani, also known as “Bruno Block,” for tax evasion related to minting and selling Pearl tokens.
Hong Kong regulator blocks access to two crypto entities, warning of fraud
According to the securities regulator, misleading information online could encourage individuals to invest in the HKD token issued by HongKongDAO.
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong has issued a warning related to suspected fraud involving crypto entities Hong Kong Digital Research Institute and BitCuped.
In a Dec. 6 notice, the SFC said the Hong Kong Police Force had blocked access to the websites of BitCuped and Hong Kong Digital Research Institute — also known as HongKongDAO — claiming users could be fooled into making illegitimate investments. The regulator also issued cease-and-desist letters to the firms’ website operators.
“The SFC suspects HongKongDAO may be disseminating false and misleading information about itself and its business through online channels,” said the Dec. 6 notice. “The SFC notes that BitCuped claims on its website that ‘Laura Cha’ and ‘Nicolas Aguzin’ serve as its Chairman and Chief Executive Officer respectively, when in fact none of them has any affiliations with BitCuped.”